The Joplin Globe, Joplin, MO

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Discussion

June 15, 2009

Training helps parents prepare first-year students for transition

By Andra Bryan Stefanoni

news@joplinglobe.com

PITTSBURG, Kan. — By July 10, more than 1,000 parents will have joined the student population at Pittsburg State University.

For a day.

They’re learning how to be the parents of college students.

Pitt Cares, a program designed to train parents to help their children be successful moving from high school to university life, is put on each Monday and Friday by PSU’s Office of Admissions.

Students and parents attend together because college is a journey that is taken together, said Heather Eckstein, director of first-year programs at PSU.

For most parents, it has been years — perhaps decades — since they were on a university campus, and much has changed. Eckstein said that in recent years, admissions offices across the nation have caught on to the notion that parents want to be part of their children’s experience, and, likewise, students rely on their parents to support and encourage them.

So PSU has admissions counselors, student ambassadors, and representatives from offices such as financial aid, housing, student health and student employment put together a daylong training session so parents learn what to expect in the first year their children are enrolled.

“The program assists parents in considering the challenges their students will face as well as transition issues at home that they might not have been expecting,” Eckstein said.

Last week, Susan Doolittle, of Overland Park, attended the first Pitt Cares session with her daughter, Haley Doolittle. Susan Doolittle said the program reassured her.

“My biggest concern is her transition, but I know it will smooth out in the first few weeks,” she said.

Lisa Wolfe, of Lenexa, attended with her oldest child, Abby, and said she learned the importance of letting Abby learn things on her own while at the same time supporting her.

“It’s really helped me understand the process,” she said.

According to the National Survey of College and University Parent Programs, done in 2003, such programming is up 35 percent from 1999. In fact, 74 percent of colleges and universities offer it.

Survey author Marjorie Savage, director of parent programs at the University of Minnesota, said students are turning to their parents through instant communication for help, and that parental help makes a difference in student success.

“With cell phones, e-mail and instant messaging, students can reach their parents at any time of the day,” she said. “Parents want to answer their students’ questions, and they are demanding their own campus representative to help them find the information.”

Safety is another motivating factor, said Steve Erwin, associate vice president for campus life and auxiliary services at PSU.

“It’s critical for parents to be aware of the safety initiatives at PSU,” he said. “We want them to be active partners in talking with students about the importance of personal choice, and how that plays into general campus safety as well as their own safety.”





Safety focus



At Pittsburg State University, parents of incoming students attend a presentation on campus safety. It focuses on the university’s emergency notification systems, violence prevention, making safe choices and safety policies.

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