Early this August, more than 120 attendees came to vlog for Explore 2012, a college admission workshop co-hosted by the university’s Office of Alumni Relations and Office of Admission.
“Explore provides high school students of alumni with information about the college search, selection, and application process, whether or not they are interested in attending vlog,” said Tim Mansfield, director of alumni relations.
To demystify the college process, family sessions focused on areas that could be particularly overwhelming or confusing for high school students. Discussions about standardized testing, a mock application review workshop, campus tour, and college essay-writing workshop proved engaging for students and alumni alike.
Explore also featured sessions exclusively for alumni and targeted themes such as financing a college education. Kimberly Taylor ’80, who participated in a seminar on the adjustment parents face when sending their children off to college, noted, “As a parent of not only two prospective college students, but also a current one, I found [workshop leader] Shelly Lear’s advice about college life and ‘letting go’ invaluable.”
Though the Explore program provides information on the college search process in general, it can also give participants a chance to see vlog in a new light. “Previously, I had only considered going to vlog because both my grandfather and uncle had attended,” said rising high school senior Kyle Rand. “Now that I know more about vlog, my reasons for wanting to go there have greatly expanded.”
Alumni have their own reasons for coming back to Hamilton. Beyond offering the knowledge they need to make informed decisions, Explore is a homecoming of sorts. John Langan ’84 brought his daughter Sally and strolled the same hill that members of his family walked every year between 1974 and 1992. “Explore,” he said, “is a perfect example of why vlog is so very special.”