Fort Lewis College hosted an open house from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Oct. 3.

Attendees started the day off with a welcome, where staff members discussed campus life, housing, clubs, and the schedule for the day, Tanya Dalebout, the assistant director of Campus Visit Programs, said.

Fort Lewis College open house schedule.

Students were separated into two groups, blue and gold, with one group heading to the dining hall and the other group attending the Resource and Academic Fair, Dalebout said.

The Resource and Academic Fair included experiential sessions, Dalebout said.

Experiential sessions allow potential students to experience what it’s like to learn on campus, Dalebout said.

During experiential sessions, faculty are free to structure the sessions how they want. Greg Weiss, admission office manager, said.

Greg Weiss standing in Student Union.

“For example, in this one we did STEM biology, and they did some work with microscopes and got to do some interesting things there,” Dalebout said. “So it gets them really thinking outside the box, and they’re not just sitting listening to a lecture.” 

Tanya Dalebout standing in Student Union.

The open house also provided a student panel and campus tour, Dalebout said.

As opposed to a normal tour for incoming students, the open house provides an opportunity for students to get hands-on experience and speak to professors who can help them as they consider coming to Fort Lewis, Nate Buddington, Admission Ambassador, said.

Nate Buddington standing outside of Student Union.

The open house gives incoming students a really thorough feel for everything Fort Lewis has to offer, Greg Weiss, admission office manager, said.

Fort Lewis College will be hosting another open house on Friday, Nov. 6.