By: Susie Prusch

By the end of August, our freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors are going to head off to Gonzaga University for the start of the 2013 fall semester. Are you going to miss your student?  Of course you are – and we have the cure!!  Please join us for Fall Family Weekend, which will be held Friday, October 25, through Sunday, October 27, 2013. This is an opportunity for parents and family members to learn about their student’s life at Gonzaga – a fun-filled weekend of academics, arts, and athletics.  Registration information will be mailed home at the end of August.

Fall Family Weekend is a time for our undergraduate students to see their families and a time for families to learn about academic life at Gonzaga University. Parents are encouraged to attend classes with their student during the day on Friday. Later that afternoon, all family members are invited to our Autumn Gala. This opening reception will give you a chance to meet GU faculty and administrators as well as other students and their families while you nibble on a wonderful array of hors d’oeuvres and sip on wine or punch.

Highlights of the weekend include attending a variety of lectures and demonstrations by our talented faculty, listening to a concert, rooting for GU at athletic events, watching the crew teams race on the Spokane River, enjoying the first theatrical production of the season, learning all about Gonzaga’s Study Abroad programs, or perhaps picking apples or a pumpkin out at the Greenbluff orchards. We invite all of our families to join us in liturgy at St. Aloysius Church or in University Chapel. When you arrive on campus for Fall Family Weekend, check in at the Registration Room just inside the main entrance to College Hall where you will find a complete schedule of the weekend’s events in your FFW folder. Dress for the entire weekend, including the Autumn Gala, is casual. By the end of October, it could be chilly so I will keep you updated with a last-minute weather report.

Other schools call it parent weekend but, at Gonzaga, we invite the whole family. Remember, Fall Family Weekend is for our students and their parents, siblings, grandparents, and godparents (we’ve even had the family dog attend a time or two). Mark your calendar in fall colors and we will see you October 25-27 on the Gonzaga University campus for Fall Family Weekend.

A 2013 Fall Family Weekend packet of material will be mailed home to you at the end of August telling you how to register for FFW. Can’t wait for the mail? By mid-August, go to www.gonzaga.edu/ffw and you can find all of the registration information and a preliminary Schedule of Events.  The FFW website will be constantly updated throughout the fall as more events are added to the weekend. Check out the FAQ section; then, if you need further information, contact Susie Prusch, Manager of Special University Events, at prusch@gu.gonzaga.edu or at (509) 313-5571.