吃瓜网

As a high school senior, applying to any college Early Decision always seemed so daunting to me. On the one hand, it shows your passion and dedication to one singular institution. On the other, if you choose Early Decision and get in, you must go there. That always seemed to have such an ominous connotation. Too much of a risk. So, I avoided it.

When I applied to Whitman in the fall of 2021, I applied Regular Decision. I was torn between Whitman and another college, and I didn’t want to make a commitment without knowing exactly what I wanted in my college experience. I had visited the other school as it was close to home, but I had never made my way up to Walla Walla. I submitted my apps early in the fall and was just planning to wait until March to hear back before making my decision.

In October, Whitman invited me to a special event day. I didn’t really know too much about Whitman besides the fact that my mom read about it in the book “,” so I had to give it a shot. I remember landing at the Walla Walla airport, getting in the rental car and driving through campus. When I saw all of the colored trees against the red brick buildings, I thought to myself, “This is going to be a tough decision.”

Throughout my Whitman visit, I had the opportunity to take a campus tour, meet the swim coach, talk with students and really understand what a Whitman experience could look like for me. A prevailing feeling that I felt was the emphasis on support and community for Whitman students. Whether that would be through my sport or living in a residence hall, I knew Whitman would be there for me. There is so much emphasis on student success, not just in academics but in all my extracurriculars. I felt seen as the whole person that I am and not just in parts of me.

At the end of my weekend visit, I was blown away by how much Whitman emphasizes the student experience and the value of the holistic person. The amount of resources for students and the work Whitman puts into bettering the college as a whole showed me how much support I would have if I came here.

My two days at Whitman had made me rethink everything. Suddenly, I wasn’t so scared of this “ominous” process of committing to a school. Since I had already applied to Whitman Regular Decision, I talked with my Admission Officer and was able to change my application to Early Decision status. Whitman made my choice easy and I have never looked back.

Since starting at Whitman in the fall of 2022, the amount of support I felt on that visit has stayed with me to this day. Whitman has allowed me to not only push myself academically but it has also helped me grow in so many ways that I never thought that I would. I am sad to leave Whitman after I graduate this spring, and I will forever be grateful for the support Whitman has given me to succeed as an individual. Whitman truly is a college that changes lives and I am so lucky to have been one of them.

Siena Hayes ’26 (she/her) is a Psychology major from Phoenix, Arizona. Siena’s first-year roommate, Elly Rectenwald ’26 (pictured above), taught her how to make pasta using only butter and Parmesan cheese. Throughout all four years at Whitman, they always make an effort to continue their pasta dinner tradition.