One of Whittier’s proudest traditions is its strong sense of community. Faculty members and students really get to know each other both in and out of the classroom.

Three faculty members even live on campus with their families, opening their elegant homes to the campus community for dinners, discussions and special performances. These programs enrich student life outside the classroom. Among the distinguished visitors to Garrett House, Hartley House and Johnson House have been award-winning authors Amy Tan and Alice Walker, baseball great Jim “Mudcat” Grant, and theater director Luis Alfaro, recipient of the prestigious Macarthur Fellowship (often called the “genius grant”).