“I think it’s really cool how there are advisories of crossed grades,”prospective student Andrew Kim, a current freshman, said. “It must help to make friends and get to know people.”

As prospective families entered the doors of Parker on November 18, current students immediately welcomed them with smiles and conversation. Next, in an introduction to the school in the auditorium, visitors got a strong sense of the school’s hominess through various speakers who shared their close experience with the school. Head of the Upper School Justin Brandon gave insight into the connection students create with the school during his speech. “As seniors leave Parker,” he said, “they learn what it means to leave home.”

According to Assistant Director of Admissions Amanda Wallace, this year’s open house served 360 attendees from 61 schools and 36 zip codes and many more– 550 — had registered online. An online program called Bookeo has been used for the past several years. “Families registered online for the event,” Wallace said, “so it was looking like a higher number than it really was.” She believes that this drop in people from the registration to the open house was due to cold, rainy, and windy weather which occurred that day.

As Director of Enrollment and Financial Aid Karen Fisher greeted the audience, she said, “Welcome to our home.” Later in the presentation, Brandon said, “We believe the upper school is a huge community.”

Families picked up on the message. “A lot of families were saying in comparison to other open houses that they felt that Parker was really authentic,” Wallace said, “and there was a high level of genuineness exhibited in the opening program and in their interactions with students and parents.”

Current parent and Open House volunteer Leon Deutch affirmed. “Parker is able to create a close and safe community,” Deutch said, “because the people who attend the school, whether teacher, student, staff, whatever, are really special and are actually interested in the wellbeing of the school.”

Parent and student members volunteered to help run the open house. Wallace said, “I think the number of parent and student volunteers we had this year worked out actually pretty well.”

The open house was “organized and smooth, like butter,” Deutsch said. “The way members of the community collaborate and care for one another keeps the school a safe space and is what continues to draw people in.”

One visitor came to hear about the possibility of student publication. “My friend told me about a writing thing where you can make a book and actually publish it, and I haven’t seen that at any other school, it’s really cool,” prospective student Jane Baffa, a 12 year old seventh grader, said. “The art rooms are also cool and seem like they can be used in a lot of ways.”

Regardless of what a subject areas a prospective student might enjoy, Parker aims to appeal to all students and their families. Deutsch said, “And overall, the most important thing about these open houses, is that people are able to see the big picture of what Parker truly is: a loving community.”