At the end of the month, Simpson will host its annual family weekend that’s jam-packed full with activities. The weekend of Sept. 25 – 28 is when the fun is set to begin.

So what exactly is family weekend?

“It’s an opportunity for anyone in your family – parents, grandparents, siblings, boyfriend, girlfriend, cousins, aunts, uncles, you name it, they can come – to really see what you’ve been up to for the past month,” Nicole Darling, assistant director of student activities and intramurals, said. “It gives them the chance to get a better feel for the campus and just give them the reassurance that you’re doing okay.”

Freshman Emily Monaghan’s family is just one family taking advantage of the opportunity.

“My mom is really excited about family weekend,” Monaghan said. “She’s never had the opportunity to do anything like this with my older siblings,” Monaghan said.

While there are several activities on campus during the weekend, Darling also encourages families to visit the town together.

“Of course we’re going to want people on campus, but I think it’s really important that the families get bonding time,” Darling said. “So go explore the town and show them what you’ve been up to.”

The registration deadline is Sept. 16, but Darling says that forms will still be accepted after that as well.

“It just works the easiest for us if we can get them in prior to or on that day, but we’ll take them after for a while.”

Along with all of the activities that are planned, there’s also an opportunity for the parents of freshmen students to meet with their child’s adviser. That can either be done in a group with other parents from the LAS class or on a one-on-one basis.

“It’s not a parent-teacher conference at all,” Darling said. “It just gives the parents a chance to meet with the adviser and ask any questions they have about the courses or bring up any concerns they may have.”

The activities for the weekend range from late Thursday afternoon to early Sunday evening.

“We adjust the schedule of events for families so that everyone can be comfortable,” Rich Ramos, assistant dean of students, said. “So whether you have your parents, grandparents, younger siblings, whoever comes, they’ll be able to participate in a little bit of everything.”

Families have the option of where to stay when they come to visit. There are three different locations in Indianola that still have open rooms available for the weekend: The Apple Tree Inn, The Super 8 and Garden and Galley.

If those rooms become booked, there are also several hotels in Des Moines available.