Manchester University has hosted students from Indian Springs Middle School, located in Columbia City, Ind., every year for nearly 30 years.  

This longstanding tradition has welcomed hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of young students to campus—with hopes that some of them might someday return as undergraduates. The most recent visit took place the week of November 4, 2024. 

Grace Newton ’23 was a middle schooler at Indian Springs who visited during the seventh grade. Now, she is an MU admissions counselor providing those same experiences to a new generation of students. 

“It was one of my first times being on a college campus and I remember having a fun time,” Newton said. “We toured the campus, explored different parts of the University, and even had foot-long hot dogs for lunch—a huge hit with all of us seventh graders!”  

By the time she was a senior in high school, she was researching and visiting colleges, hoping to find the best fit for her. A friend mentioned he was applying to Manchester for software engineering, which brought back memories of her visit years prior.  

“I hadn’t thought much about it since that seventh-grade trip, and it hadn’t been on my radar, but his interest made me curious enough to look into it again. The application process was smooth, and I was excited to be accepted a day after applying. I immediately scheduled a campus tour, and as soon as I arrived, I felt a sense of warmth and inclusion—it really felt like home! When I visited campus at 13 years old, I never thought this would be the place I would come back to and call home. Since then, MU has given me lifelong friendships and meaningful connections with professors who’ve supported me outside the classroom and long after college. I’m incredibly grateful for the experiences I’ve had here, and now I’m excited to be able to pour back into supporting prospective students who are in the same place I was back then.” 

Manchester hosts hundreds of elementary and middle school students every year and looks forward to continuing this tradition of creating an early, positive impression on area youth.