By Taliyah Clark | Reporter

Baylor Chamber of Commerce will host its annual Family Weekend on Friday and Saturday as the university welcomes hundreds of students’ families.

Started in 1960, Family Weekend was originally a single day where parents could explore and learn about the university with their students. Years later, the day was extended to a full weekend that features a talent show, a parent-student on-campus dinner, an opportunity for parents to meet their students’ professors and many other fun events across campus.

Planning and preparing for Family Weekend begins early in the spring and continues until the week of the event.

Family Weekend chair and chamberwoman Mansfield junior Casey Sparkman sees the event as a great way for parents to connect to the university.

“My favorite part of Family Weekend is seeing Baylor families who may have not been to Baylor before get to see the atmosphere and the community of Baylor,” Sparkman said. “As the coordinator for the event, I also enjoy working closely with senior-level administrators. They have so much love for the university, and it’s cool to see how their ideas for the event can shape the university.”

Sparkman said the event is not only beneficial to families, but also to new students.

“The former Family Weekend chair once told me that students decide whether they are staying or going within the first six weeks, so having Family Weekend within the first six weeks of school can reiterate that Baylor has a lot to offer,” Sparkman said.

For Celina freshman Kathryn Wimmer, this weekend will be a chance for her to check in with her family and to introduce them to her friends as well as to show them to her life at Baylor.

“I think Family Weekend is important because, coming into college, it’s kind of scary and hard to leave your family, so it’s great to have an opportunity where your family can come see how you are doing and how you are adjusting, and they get to meet all your friends,” Wimmer said.

This year, Family Weekend will be featuring a new event. Friday night, students and their families will be able to see the football team take on the Rice Owls on the big screen in McLane Stadium. There will be food trucks near the RG3 statue and food vouchers will be available for the families and students.

Anyone interested in getting involved in family weekend can visit www.baylor.edu/familyweekend to see the events planned for the weekend.