<p>We’ve been chuckling over the “Bama-love” that goes along with the reception. Nice reminder email. Nice little phone call with a fine “Roll Tide” at the end…DD is looking forward to her first UA exposure. DS may not be able to attend - Robotics competition this weekend (FRC - Go Team 612!) so they’re packing up to leave tomorrow after school.</p>
<p>Anyone else going to the reception tonight? If so, we’ll see you there!</p>
<p>VAmomof4, I will be there with my son and a friend he recruited to UA; both boys attend the Montgomery Blair Math, Science, and Computer Science Magnet Program. I attended last year and was shocked at the size of the turnout that filled a large ballroom; RTR.</p>
<p>Well, DH took my DD to the reception. They came home chattering about how good the speech from Dr. Wittaker was (there was also a student and a parent that spoke). DH said “that guy should be a motivational speaker or something!” DD got her first Bama t-shirt and lanyard. They also were given one for DS who couldn’t make it because of Robotics. Quite the cross-section of kids from DC, Northern VA and MD. Daughter liked that high schools were printed on the name tags so she could see where everyone was from.</p>
<p>Overall - good impression of UA. Very polished and informative. Don’t know if other schools do that sort of thing, but we haven’t run into any before! Roll Tide!</p>
<p>Terrific reception in Tysons Corner last night. Huge turnout. I agree that the name tags with schools were a nice touch. I also liked the fact that Dr. Whitaker conveyed a lot of useful information during his presentation; I thought last year’s reception was a little too much “rah rah” and not enough concrete information for prospective parents and students. Kudos all around to the UA team that put this event together. </p>
<p>Thank you for the updates about the DC reception. My son is a freshman attending one of the NOVA high schools. Based on everything I have read here on CC, I believe UA would be a great fit for him. Do you think it would be beneficial for him to attend the reception next year (sophomore year) or should we wait until he’s a bit older? Thank you! </p>
<p>According to my DH, there were some freshmen/sophomores at the reception. My kids weren’t really thinking about college at that point, although my younger 2 have tagged along on some college visits. If he’s interested, no reason not to attend. Free food and free stuff - and a chance to make an early connection.</p>
<p>I agree with VAmomof4; it’s never too early to experience the UA magic! By the way, VAmom, I was the parent speaker at the Tysons event, so feel free to ask me any follow-up questions you may have. </p>
<p>^^^ Dr Whitaker IS a great speaker who comes across as very genuine. (He is aero eng’g, so that’s why I also sing his praises.) He has been very helpful to us. We originally met him as part of our tour of UA, and have been in contact since. His daughter graduated from UA just last semester (Civil Eng’g, I believe), and now works in the Chicago area. </p>
<p>Please let us know who is speaking at DC event, and how it goes. ;)</p>