By Elliott Nace | Staff Writer
The university held its first Invitation to Excellence of the year from Jan. 24 to 25 at the Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center. The event allows elite high school applicants to visit Baylor’s campus and engage with its full range of faculty. A second event will run from Feb. 7 to 8.
The program, which targets high-GPA, high standardized test-scoring students, aims to inform invitees of what they can expect from their Baylor faculty and mentors. Several staffed stations spanned both floors of the Welcome Center, with each representing one of the university’s various departments across its nine schools and colleges, as well as its many administrative offices. The Friday reception also featured a student-led music ensemble and refreshments.
Katie Cox, a McKinney graduate student and ambassador for the School of Music said the event shows prospective students Baylor’s variety in academic disciplines.
“You have everything from people in business to ROTC, I know people from biochemistry […] you have people from all walks of life here, from all departments, and it’s just the big front-door welcome to what makes Baylor, Baylor,” Cox said.
All attendees received a $20,000 merit scholarship spread out across their four years at Baylor. This financial aid, bundled with the active faculty environment, gave students a glimpse into the feasibility and accreditation that follows a Baylor education.
Dr. Wen Zhang, a professor of management at the Hankamer School of Business, said that a major advantage of the event is its ability to demystify the transition from the classroom to professional life.
“It’s great to see those fresh faces from the students and understand their concerns […] to let them know, explain the details,” Zhang said.
In the Jan. 23 “Presidential Perspective” email, President Linda Livingstone noted that the event “has expanded in scope over the past few years,” with “approximately 600 students” expected to attend each of the two events.
The program, which was once run by the School of Business, now benefits from its heightened scale, Zhang said.
“Now we see a much larger population,” Zhang said. “I definitely think Baylor is gaining popularity, especially among those elite students, and that’s the growing part.”
The program’s appeal not only benefits the university, but also improves future iterations of the event. Redmond, Wash., junior Brady Parker, a student working in admissions, said that his prior experience with the event came full-circle as he staffed it for the first time.
“It solidified the fact that I wanted to go to Baylor,” he said. “I’m sitting here and I watch the students walk in, and their faces just light up.”
Faculty and students alike walk away from the event with clarity and connections.
“This is my favorite night of the year,” Dr. Tom McGrath, undergraduate program director of chemistry and biochemistry, said. “I love the energy. I love interacting with students. I love when I later meet students that I’ve met at this, and then they end up in my class a year later or six months later.”
Invitation to Excellence gives students a head start on forming faculty relationships in their fields of interest and in turn allows for faculty to shape the university’s upcoming class.
“One of my favorite parts of the job is chatting to students. It’s nice to give something back,” McGrath said.
