At Freshman Orientation, Helping Mom and Dad Let Go

Sanette Tanaka:

At Augustana College, they call it "the short goodbye."

It's when administrators at the small private college in Rock Island, Ill., give parents 15 minutes to say goodbye to their children. Then, students are told to report to the gym for freshman orientation, while parents are basically told to shove off.

"Parents go meet with advisers in small groups to compose themselves, and then they need to go home," says Evelyn Campbell, dean and vice president of student services at Augustana.

Faced with what a Syracuse University administrator calls "the most over-involved generation of all time," colleges across the country are increasingly focusing on parents who are struggling with the transition from high school to college. Colleges are holding special orientation seminars for parents, appointing administrators to handle outreach with parents and providing emailed newsletters and specific parent portal websites, among other services.

One of the toughest parts, administrators say, is educating parents how to stay involved without coming across as overbearing, or worse, a hovering "helicopter parent."

Posted by Jim Zellmer at July 26, 2012 1:39 AM
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