Potential incoming freshman for next year came to the University on Monday morning to learn about the campus and its organizations.

Presidents’ Day Open House was from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. where student and parent visitors could participates in open houses, classes, campus and student organization tours throughout the day.

Each Preview Day the University hosts includes campus, residence halls, dining halls and classroom tours so students can get a feel of what it would be like if they choose to come to school at the University.

Every academic department participates by allowing students to walk into classes, view open houses and learn about what student organizations each department’s students can get involved with.

“Preview Day is on Saturdays and is one of the largest programs at the University, but the nice thing about Presidents’ Day is students can get a feel for what campus life is really about when they go into classrooms and see people interacting on campus,” said Cecilia Castellano, interim director of Admissions.

Preview Day ranges each year with about 1,170 students who pre-register, but only about 700-900 people who show up.

Because of the winter weather this year, less students attended than who signed up because high schools are starting to make up snow days with holidays, Castellano said.

While some departments may not have seen a lot of students, students in the Education Building were happy with the turn out.

“We have seen a great turn out [at the location],” said freshman Katelyn Seger, President-Elect of the Early Childhood Education Organization. “We’ve seen an abundance of people and it’s very exciting to talk to people and let them know what is available outside of the classroom.”

Potential student Philip Homa has traveled to multiple schools across the country such as Iowa, Indiana and Missouri before visiting Bowling Green.

“I thought this school was a lot better than the others [I went to],” Homa said. “They presented more activities and organizations than the others.”

His father, Bill Homa, was also impressed.

“The whole feel was very friendly and seemed very organized,” Bill said. “We have run into many helpers and are pleased with all the direct answers.”

Castellano said she enjoys seeing the entire University come together by interacting with potential Falcons.

The event takes a year to plan, involving multiple outlets such as parking services, marketing and communications, residence halls and professors for tours and the police department.

“The last two to three months are usually the craziest dealing with the fine-tuning,” Castellano said. “It’s a great way to bring the community and campus together to show what BG has to offer to [newcomers].”

Hannah Reddington, another student visitor from Anthony Wayne High School in White House, Ohio, said she has been looking forward to this date for a while.

“I’ve known I’ve wanted to come to BGSU since I was in the 8th grade,” Reddington said.

Visiting the University reaffirmed her desire to come to Bowling Green for her college career.

“The tours of the campus organizations is the best part,” she said. “It’s nice to see what I can be involved with outside of class, which is what I want to do the most.”

Check campus update to see when the next Preview Day is.

Also, check bgnews.com for an interactive graph of the break down of the numbers from Presidents’ Day Open House.