<p>Our son's a HS senior and we've decided to fly out to Tempe the last weekend in October to visit Barrett Honors College at Arizona State. S is a serious marching band percussionist, so we're planning to go to the ASU-Colorado football game to check out the band (and OK, the Sun Devils too). Any suggestions of things to do and see in Tempe, at ASU and in the Barrett complex? Does anyone know if it's possible for a prospective student to spend the night in Barrett? Any things to see off of campus that are standard ASU student attractions?</p>
<p>It’s a friendly music school…can you meet with some of the percussion faculty, possibly hang with some band members and get a tour of the music facility?</p>
<p>Tubing on the Salt river is great fun -
[Salt</a> River Tubing and Recreation - Arizona’s Floating Picnic!](<a href=“http://www.saltrivertubing.com/]Salt”>http://www.saltrivertubing.com/)</p>
<p>I don’t know if you’ve made hotel reservations yet but one can often get some great rates at the nice resorts in the summer since it’s so hot and hence not the tourist season.</p>
<p>And if you are interested in architecture:
[url=<a href=“http://www.franklloydwright.org/fllwf_web_091104/Tours.html]Tours[/url”>Visit Taliesin West in Arizona - Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation]Tours[/url</a>] Taliesin West</p>
<p>Please report back your impressions of Barrett’s. I do know prospective students who have spent the night with Barrett’s students. I don’t recall if it was a private arrangement or through the school.
Your assignment, should you accept it ;), is to determine if budget cuts will affect the Honors Program and how the honors students feel about the non-honors classes they take/ the level of rigor in mixed classes.
Thanks in advance, have a great trip!</p>
<p>Phoenix Zoo and the Desert Botanical Gardens. Eat lunch at Alice Cooper’s Restaurant. Visit hole in the rock in Papago Park (where zoo is located). Go to Rawhide Western Town. If you like to golf, there are too many courses to mention. Visit the Heard Museum. </p>
<p>At ASU–find the perpetual motion pendulum. Check out Grady Gammage (now I think they call it ASU Gammage). And for a few more things:
<a href=“http://alumni.asu.edu/about/100-things-sun-devils-should-do[/url]”>http://alumni.asu.edu/about/100-things-sun-devils-should-do</a></p>
<p>So many things to do and I can’t think of them all right now. I grew up in Phoenix and am an ASU alum. Enjoy the visit!!!</p>
<p>For anything outside remember it’ll be hot hot hot and not much fun in the daytime unless it involves water. That leaves out many of the attractions above.</p>
<p>Think they are leaving later than now, last weekend in october should be okay weather-wise.</p>
<p>She’s going in Oct. Should be perfect weather for the zoo, Desert Botanical gardens and so on. An old HS buddy played bass drum with the ASU band. It was something else! I grew up in the Valley as well. </p>
<p>To the above list, I’d add Old Towne Scottsdale and 5th Ave. The first, is mostly southwestern style shopping, but a very nice walk though the park with sculptures, waterfalls, and a restaurant I like, AZ 88. Slightly pricy, if beautiful. 5th Ave. is galleries of various sorts. Rural Road in Tempe, heading north, turns into Scottsdale Road. </p>
<p>Why did they change the name of Grady Gammage? An affront to history…</p>
<p>Great suggestions above - thanks! CJR, I’ll post a report on CC’s Campus Vibe after we get back and will certainly check out the budget cut impact and mixed class rigor. GaMom and I are really intrigued by Barrett; S is more in the mode of “I’ll check it out and see.” I’d like for him to have a positive experience on the trip because it seems to represent the overlap in our Venn diagram between affordability, outside-the-South diversity, and the distinctive college experience we’d like for him to have.</p>
<p>gadad
D was a Barrett Honors/College of Music grad from way back. Native of NYC suburb. Had a fab experience…once she saw this campus she wasn’t going anywhere else! Of course we visited in Fevruary, walked around w/o jackets and admired the oranges in the trees on campus!! With a limited timeframe ,concentrate your visit on sights a student would want to see, not tourist type attractions. Make time for Mill Ave, the adjacent restaurant/shopping/bar strip. Its nice to stay locally too if your student cant swing a stay with an Honors college kid…there are some hotels you can walk to campus from.
Barrett had/has lots of funding from craig Barrett so state budget woes may not impact them as greatly as non endowed Honors Colleges.
The Music School is an awesome facility…D REALLY appreciated that practice rooms has windows!! so many don’t,are in vbasements,etc. She didnt march but had many friends who did.Performing groups on campus are stellar, music faculty are first rate.The campus is beautiful with great desert plantings,palm trees and cactus.
Weather in Tempe should be wonderful in later October.</p>
<p>Whoops - I missed that this is going to be late October. In that case forget about tubing on the river and I second the suggestions of VAmom2015. The weather at that time should be great.</p>
<p>I’ll add that you might want to do a bit of hiking around Squaw Peak Park -
[Squaw</a> Peak Park](<a href=“http://www.go-arizona.com/Squaw-Peak/]Squaw”>Squaw Peak Park)</p>
<p>Also be sure to eat at a number of Mexican restaurants while in Az.</p>
<p>Yes but they renamed squaw peak. Renamed after native American soldier killed in iraq (I believe).
We toured campus with ds a year ago. I think honors dorms are new and sounded nice, although we didn’t tour them.</p>
<p>Sent from my DROID2 GLOBAL using CC App</p>
<p>^^ I heard about the renaming but couldn’t remember the new name - the last time I was there it had the old name. It’s a nice area to do small hikes in that’s right in the metro area. </p>
<p>There are also scenic areas in the mountains just east of the Phoenix area if you want to get out of the population zone and see some of those areas.</p>
<p>gadad - If you’re not used to the desert then you might like it even better since it’s different than hiking in the woods with the cactus, ruggedness, etc. (but the park has easy hikes). </p>
<p>We ate at this steak restaurant in the hills around Scottsdale and it was scenic and kind of fun but I haven’t been there in years -
[Pinnacle</a> Peak Patio Steakhouse - Scottsdale - Phoenix - Arizona - Original Cowboy Steakhouse](<a href=“Mpo444 : Situs Judi Online Dengan Keuntungan Terbesar”>Mpo444 : Situs Judi Online Dengan Keuntungan Terbesar)</p>
<p>It looks like Squaw Peak is now named Piestewa Peak.</p>
<p>Lori Piestewa was Jessica Lynch’s friend in the U.S. Army. She was killed in action the day Lynch was captured in Iraq. Piestewa was the first Native American woman U.S. soldier killed in combat.</p>
<p>Do lunch in Tempe at House of Tricks. A favorite of faculty and staff of ASU.
[House</a> of Tricks - Tempe, Award Winning Restaurant](<a href=“Welcome houseoftricks.com - BlueHost.com”>http://www.houseoftricks.com/)</p>
<p>If you feel like living on the edge and going into the ‘city’ and want some good Mexican, non-touristy food try La Tolteca in central Phoenix or try Los Dos Molinos on the south side or the Mesa location.</p>
<p>For a slice of old Phoenix, go out for a steak and nice meal at Durants in central Phoenix.
[Durants[/url</a>]</p>
<p>Read the New Times on line prior to your trip to see what is going on.
[url=<a href=“http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/]Phoenix”>http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/]Phoenix</a> News, Events, Restaurants, Music Phoenix New Times](<a href=“http://www.durantsaz.com/]Durants[/url”>http://www.durantsaz.com/)</p>
<p>Thanks - any suggestions on hotels near campus?</p>
<p>Depends on budget and amenities wanted. Twin Palms is on Apache Blvd very near the Student Rec Center, union, business school, and Gammage and would be a ‘budget friendly’ idea.</p>
<p>There’s a Four Points (Sheraton) right near Barrett (caddy corner across the block). Less than a 5 minute walk. It’s a pretty nice hotel, has only been open a couple years. When you talk to the folks at Barrett about setting up meetings for the day, ask the about staying there. The hotel offers a Barrett discount rate and the Barrett office can give you the code for it.</p>
<p>Our son is now a senior and came there from the Midwest, lured by the National Merit scholarship and the great weather (campus visit in January sealed the deal!). It has turned out to be an excellent choice for him. He’s a Biomedical Engineering major and has had outstanding opportunities for involvement in research. </p>
<p>The Barrett community is wonderful - it’s a great place for smart kids to be with a diverse group of inquisitive people. The new facilities are awesome - terrific dorms and a very good dining hall.</p>
<p>Our son stayed overnight with a Barrett Ambassador in the dorm during our campus visit. It was a really good experience and helped him get a feel for what the college experience would be like at ASU. Call the Barrett office to set up an overnight visit. They have a limited number of Ambassadors so the overnight visits are on a first come-first served basis.</p>
<p>Enjoy your visit - I would echo others’ comments that spending time visiting areas where students spend time like Mill Ave will be more valuable in determining if the school is a good fit than hitting tourist sites.</p>