Friendly students. Supportive faculty. Approachable and knowledgeable staff. A balance of challenging academic experiences, outdoor adventures, and extracurricular activities. All in an unpretentious, non-competitive environment. A sense of infinite possibilities. A powerful sense of community. These are among the first things students notice about Whitman.

“I like to think of Whitman students as being high definition,” says Daniel Grant, from Corvallis, Oregon. “What I mean is that this is a community where everyone is smart but unassuming. There is a lack of pretentiousness here, a lack of the whole status thing. People are genuine and always willing to engage with you in conversation. For me, this really kind of gets to the core of the Whitman community and the Whitman experience.”

A musician, member of Whitman’s Jazz Ensemble 1, and an Ultimate Frisbee fan, Daniel chose to come to Whitman not only because it offered him everything he was looking for in a college but also because of his experience during his visit to campus. “It was my first visit to Whitman but I found basically every student I passed by taking the time to say ‘hi’ and being genuinely interested in hearing about my experience on campus. It was unlike any other college I had visited and it was amazing.”

As he explores his interests in geology, politics, and physics, before deciding on his major, the sense of community he has experienced at Whitman is something that continues to reward Daniel. “One thing I have noticed is that there is a lot of intermingling here — between freshmen and other students and between students and faculty,” he says. “Academically, it’s been extremely rigorous, but I’ve also found the professors to be very approachable and supportive.”

What does Daniel expect of Whitman in the years to come? “I want to learn what I’m really good at,” he says. “I want to discover some new interests. I want to enroll in challenging courses. I want to get involved in research projects with my professors. I want to meet interesting people, to study abroad, to actually lead trips organized by the Outdoor Program.”

And why is he so confident he can accomplish all those goals? “Because that’s the kind of community that Whitman is,” replies Daniel. “It’s a community that encourages every student to do what they want whether it is getting their art exhibited or teaching in Botswana. Whitman offers us all the support and opportunities we need to be whoever we want.”