Earlham College will appear on Amazon Prime Video’s “The College Tour” on Feb. 25, 2025. “The College Tour” is a hit show that gives viewers an inside scoop and behind-the-scenes knowledge of America’s higher education institutions. Now in its 13th season, the show has featured more than 150 of the nation’s top colleges and universities.
Watch the full episode, and learn more about The College Tour.
What’s special about “The College Tour” is its student-centered focus. Hosted by Alex Boylan, “The College Tour” is divided up into several segments per episode, with a different aspect of the featured college discussed in each segment, each discussed by a different student from the college. Students get to decide for themselves what they want to discuss or highlight.
Ten Earlhamites were selected out of open casting calls put forth for the show. Filming occurred during the first week of the 2024 school year. From the Epic Journey, Earlham’s signature student success program, to Earlham’s Quaker heritage, important facets of what it means to be an Earlhamite were on display. The show also highlights popular destinations on campus, including Miller Farm, Suzanne Hoerner Jackson Equestrian Center and special international travel opportunities that are available for first-generation students and student-athletes.
“For me, it was important to emphasize Earlham’s Quaker culture and community efforts and how Miller Farm reflects that in its values,” says Jonny Costello, a senior and environmental sustainability major from Seattle, Washington, and one of the 10 selected. “I feel like one of the more knowledgeable members on campus when it comes to Quakerism, so I didn’t mind talking about it, but it also was interesting, having one person be the spokesperson for any given topic. Overall, I’d say it was a good experience.”
He echoes the sentiments of Em Tallitsch and Oghenemaro Imieye, who both also had pleasant experiences while filming.
“I feel like one of my biggest accomplishments that I wanted to talk about was that as a freshman I was one of the people who formed the African Student Association and was also part of the student advisory council for Black students. I wanted to highlight that because it’s not really talked about all that much.”
That sense of belonging and identity was echoed by Tallitsch as well.
“I spoke on belonging at Earlham in three ways, with my identity as someone who’s nonbinary, with my sports team and with academics. My academics have presented challenges, but I don’t think I’d have gotten the same support I’ve gotten here if I’d gone to another university. My professors see me for who I am and my intelligence,” says Tallitsch.
Scot Schaeffer, vice president for enrollment management, and Erin Hutchinson, assistant vice president for enrollment management, said participating in the episode was a great opportunity for Earlham and they hope to spread the word about the College through this special opportunity.
“We had a diverse group of students who responded to the open casting call, and all of our students got to choose what they spoke on. Some were local, some were international. It was a good group of students. They represent Earlham well.”
–Scot Schaeffer, vice president of enrollment management
“We want to make a big splash with this and highlight our students and our school,” says Hutchinson. “Earlham has a lot of things to be proud of. One of the things I really appreciated during the filming was seeing the campus through the eyes of strangers. You start to take for granted what you see every day, but listening to students’ stories and hearing how the film crew responded to that really made me proud of Earlham and helped me see with new eyes what we have to offer here.”
While the episode won’t premiere on Amazon until February, the College has early access to the program to build momentum for the show and episode. Earlham plans to host watch parties and a maroon carpet premiere in the months prior to the formal release.