This year, Family Weekend is Sept. 21-23. The activities were put together by Nicole Darling, assistant director of student activities/intramural director and Rich Ramos, assistant dean for student activities.

The activities for Friday night will include family discounted golf and movies, open swim in Cowles Athletic Center, bike night on The Square and family game night.

“There are many different activities to do instead of the usual one we had before,” Darling said. “Instead of having a performer, we’ll be giving students and their families an option on what they want to do and we hope by having more choices it will draw in more people to come earlier.”

On Saturday, students and their parents can enjoy a pancake breakfast and then head over to some informational sessions about things such as Greek society, Simpson’s legacy families and student life on campus.

“The pancake breakfast allows for a relaxed, family-oriented environment, while the Greek family information session has gone over well in the past,” Darling said.

After attending the sessions, students and their parents can eat a pre-game meal in Pfeiffer Dining Hall and then head over to the football game. Family Bingo is the entertainment for Saturday night and can be played in the Storm Street Grill. Sunday morning activities include family worship and brunch which haven’t changed from previous years.

“Family Weekend is an opportunity for families to come and be a part of the campus, which doesn’t happen that often,” Ramos said. “It’s important that parents see what goes on here and that they get connected.”

Family Weekend has been happening around the same time for years, but Darling and Ramos have debated making it the same weekend as Homecoming.

“A lot of schools do Homecoming and Family Weekend together and we’d possibly like to do that as well,” Darling said. “It would give parents an opportunity to spend more time with students, especially those who are athletes.”

While Darling and Ramos haven’t decided yet on whether or not to change the actual date to the same as Homecoming, there is one reason that might hold them back.

“Having them on the same weekend might take away from another opportunity for more visitors to be on campus,” Ramos said. “By having them on different weekends, it will allow us to maximize our resources and see a different side of campus life.”

For those who aren’t necessarily interested in attending Family Weekend but want to help out, there are many different ways to become involved. CAB workers have helped out in the past during the day. Some students who have helped out in the past are seniors Amy Jo Jacobsen and Ann Johnson.

“I helped out at the registrar table, gave out tickets for the game and lunch, talked with families and ran errands around campus,” Johnson said. “I enjoyed talking with the families of students and sometimes I would register one of my friends’ parents and we would talk for a few minutes about their son or daughter.”

Jacobsen also enjoyed the volunteer work that she did for Family Weekend.

“I like to volunteer,” Jacobsen said. “I helped with face painting and it was a rewarding experience to see all of the children’s faces after I painted them.”

So whether it’s helping out or attending, Family Weekend is a great experience to have parents come to campus and see what student life is all about.

“I like to volunteer,” Jacobsen said. “I helped with face painting and it was a rewarding experience to see all of the children’s faces after I painted them.”

So whether it’s helping out or attending, Family Weekend is a great experience to have parents come to campus and see what student life is all about.