Meet Our Whitties: Lauren Mendoza '22

Meet Our Whitties is an occasional feature produced by the Office of Communications. It features a Q&A with students from across Whitman College.

Lauren Mendoza ‘22
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Major: Not declared

What brought you to Whitman?
I heard about Whitman at a Colleges that Change Lives college fair. I love the Pacific Northwest and I'm a huge backpacker. I wanted easy access to the outdoors. I visited Walla Walla and I really liked it.

What is the best class you've taken so far?
I like chemistry. It's really difficult because I didn't take that much chemistry in high school. But, my teacher, Frank Dunnivant, is a really funny guy. He teaches chemistry but he also talks a lot about the environment and the world. He doesn't sugar coat it. He strongly recommended that we go to the Todd Miller talk. After the lecture we also talked about it in class. I really liked that.

What do you like to do for fun?
I'm on the cross country team. We go for runs at Mill Creek all the time. We always have a "Fun Run Friday" with the team.

How do you connect with the Walla Walla community?
I volunteer with Classroom Connection in a Spanish class. I work with the kids and use vocab cards and help with their assignments and questions.

What's your go-to meal at Cleveland Commons?
The salad bar is the best value because you can stack it up. It's got a lot of options.

What do you want to do after Whitman?
I want to do something where I'm outside. I know I want to study abroad and utilize my knowledge of language. I want to be with people. I'm going to find a job that includes all of that.

What's your favorite thing about being a student at Whitman?
I meet new people every day in my classes. Being on a team is also great because I have an automatic group of friends. Also, the campus is so beautiful. I'll never get tired of it. Walla Walla surprises me!