As the son of an Air Force officer, Spencer Mardis ’18 has lived in three countries (Germany, Japan, and America) and studied in six different schools before heading for college. His area of interest is criminology, so he’s considering a major in behavioral neuroscience and biology.

He was set to enroll at the University of Delaware until he and his parents had a chance encounter with Satyajit Dattagupta, vice president of enrollment management, on a snowy February Sunday morning while they were strolling the campus.

“He just dropped everything and spent several hours talking with us, showing us around the campus, telling us his story,” Chris Mardis says. “This tells us they do things differently here, and it’s not just student-to-teacher ratios, it’s the way they do everything. And since then that has been underscored and corroborated with every encounter we’ve had, whether it’s the business office or the financial aid office.”

That same enthusiasm came through when the three of them sat in on a biology class with Aaron Krochmal, associate professor of biology. 

“When we came out I said, ‘I want to be in that class!’ ” says Emily Mardis, a speech pathologist. “What energy he had, what passion! What fun!”

Emily says it’s easy to connect to people—students, faculty, and staff—on campus. “That’s a lot of the magic.” 

Spencer says although his parents attended larger universities as undergrads, he always preferred a smaller school, and Washington College was ideal. He’s still contemplating what clubs to join as he decides on his major; right now, he’s thinking about the College Democrats and the Psychology Club.