- A Corban experiencer, denoted by her nametag, dances during the midnight breakfast in the fall 2010 Corban Experience. Photo by DeAnna Thomas
Lines of ravenous 17-22-year-olds stream through the cafeteria, eating stack after stack of pancakes. Students scream and applaud as dance crews moonwalk and break-dance across the Psalm Center stage. Classrooms feel a just a bit crowded Monday morning, as visitor after visitor piles through the door, filling up every available seat and even the floor space around them. What the heck is going on at Corban? Why, Corban Experience, of course! Scores of high school students from across the nation come and stay the night at Corban to get a little taste of what college life here on the hill can be.
Behind the scads of high school students, are the oh-so-necessary Corban Hosts, who serve as both roommates and tour-guides to the visitors.
Rachel Lee, Corban’s visit coordinator in the admissions office, describes the perfect Corban host as “Dependable, outgoing and fun. Students who are genuine and will give [visiting] students an idea of what Corban is really like.”
Rose Miller, a freshman communications major not only attended Corban Experience as a high school student, but also had the opportunity to be a host herself.
Rose explained how she set aside the weekend for her visitors, taking the night off work and preparing for their visit.
Her roommate Anna Ostrom couldn’t help but brag about her, “Rose is a really good host. She had games ready to do, and she had taken the time to look over the schedule.”
“The key is taking the time and spending it on them. It’s just one weekend.”
Just as outlined by Lee, exceptional hosting requires three things: to be dependable, outgoing and fun, and genuine.
Dependabiliy is obviously important. For a visitor, nothing is worse than having a host who doesn’t show, or even a host who is too busy with homework or his/her own friends to show them around campus.
Secondly, hosting takes someone who is outgoing and fun. Going from high school to college is a big leap, and often nerve-wracking life change. With their Corban Host, high school students can see what a blast college can be.
And lastly, Corban Hosts should be genuine. Students will love the glitz and excitement of pancake night and Limelight, but they also want to know about how life at Corban really is. Answer questions, be a friend, and shine the light of Christ. It’ll be an experience visitors won’t soon forget.