Not so long ago, one of our staff got a call from a father who couldn’t reach his student. He was concerned and asked that the staff find his student and make certain that they were alright. A few inquiries revealed that the student had decided to travel to Chile and had clearly informed only their roommate. The father’s response? “Of course they did.”

You and your student have developed a pattern of communication and when that pattern changes without notice, families can get worried. As staff of the college, we regularly get calls from parents who are very worried because their student has not responded to a text or calls – the issue is that the student has altered their pattern of communication. More often than not, the student has not traveled far away, but instead reports that their phone ran out of charge or they had a late night and slept through the day. The student is generally startled that the college staff arrive at their door and instruct them to call home to relieve worry.

My point here is that it’s important for you and your student to speak about when it is that you each can count on communicating with each other – perhaps a phone call once each week, more or less. Some of you may get texts between those scheduled contacts, but when you know that you communicate at a regular time, lack of texts isn’t so likely to spark worry. And of course it would seem sensible that you also agree to communicate with each other about when you need to change the time of your regular contact.

Speaking of communicating, a brief reminder (assuming your student has mentioned this to you) – tomorrow morning, July 27, course registration opens for your student. They’ve been receiving emails about registration and have the First-Year Registration Guide in their email inbox. Please keep in mind that the first semester of college is rarely a ‘make or break’ term with regard to the courses your student takes. This first year is a good time for exploration. They may find courses that excite them and others that don’t. It’s all useful information.

Roz Eaton
Dean of Students