Volume XXV, Issue 10
Educating Women to Excel
November 14,2007
ON THE
INSIDE:
Op-Ed page
p. 2
Campus Events
p. 3
Campus Events
p. 4
WEATHER
TODAY: Mostly Sunny.
Low 58, High 76.
Thursday: T-Showers.
Low 36, High 64.
Friday: Suony. Low 32,
High 56.
Saturday: Partly
Cloudy. Low 41, High
58.
Sunday: Mostly Cloudy.
Low 45, High 62.
Monday: Showers. Low
44, High 59.
'Hiesday: Partly Cloudy.
Low 42, High 61.
Sourcie: www.weather.
com
Information retrieved
'Ries. Nov. 13 at 4:30
p.m.
Interview Answers Questions about
Appropriate Parental Involvement
Chelsea McGlaughlin
Staff Writer
Regarding parental
involvement, how much
is too much? How much
is not enough? Dean of
Students Ann Gleason
often ponders the nature
of the parent-student
relationship in her work
at Meredith. She says,
"Many students in
this current generation
welcome their parents'
involvement in their
lives and parents can
be instrumental in sup
porting and encouraging
their children through
the developmental pro
cess. I recognize that it is
challenging for students
and parents to redefine
their changing relation
ship so that parents are
still supportive while
recognizing that their
children need more inde
pendence. I think the
healthiest parent-child
relationships are those
that provide a balance
between challenge and
support."
No matter how well
intentioned or curious a
parent may be, Meredith
is required by law to
protect student pri
vacy. Gleason explains,
"FERPA, the Family
Educational Rights and
Privacy Acf7 requires
Meredith College to pro
tect the confidentiality
of student educational
records—for example,
academic grades." (Refer
to pages 168-169 in the
Student Handbook and
Activities Calendar for
the complete listing
of Meredith's policy.)
Sometimes parents
do inquire about their
students' progress in
courses and their grades.
However, "faculty and/or
staff must have permis
sion from the student to
release this information
to parents or the par
ents can prove that the
student is a dependent
student to obtain infor
mation."
What is the best bal
ance of parental involve^'
ment and independence?
Gleason says, "As a
student development
professional, I see tra-
ditional-aged students
as developing/emerging
adults, but I also under
stand the parents' need
for information. The best
case scenario would be
one which encourages
communication, open
ness, trust and honesty
between students and
parents." Students
should be able to com-
mtmicate freely widi
their parents, but they
should not have to talk
vdth their parents before
making every decision.
Perhaps techno
logical advances have
contributed to parental
involvement in students'
lives. Gleason says, "The
increased use of technol
ogy in maintaining com-
mimication is definitely
Answers cont. on pg. 4
It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's My...Parent?
Erin Etheridge
Amber McKinney
Staff Writers
On the popular web
site Urban Dictionary,
the primary definition
of a helicopter parent
is: "The bane of the
dean's existence. The
parent who hovers and
flaps his wings while the
kid lives in his shadow.
Particularly prevalent
at high-priced col
leges, where parents feel
obliged (or entitled) to
intervene on issues down
to ttie candlepower of the
lightbulbs."
Helicopter parents are
those parents who just
can't seem to accept that
their child has grown up
and moved out of the
house. Perhaps they're
too attached to the PTA
or sports boosters. Or
maybe tihey refuse to cut
what Middlebury College
psychologist Barbara
Hoffer refers to as the
"electronic tether{s]"
of email and cellular
phones. Essentially, these
parents feel as if they
have to continue to be
highly involved in their
child's academic and
social life.
College students,
beware. According to the
News & Observer, heli
copter parents aren't just
on surveillance missions
any more: they're on the
attack.
According to Justin
Pope, an education writer
for the Associated Press,
an experimental section
of questions about paren
tal involvement in college
life was included in this
year's National Survey
of Student Engagement.
According to the survey's
website, the NSSE is
designed for students
"to provide information
about [their] undergrad
uate experience, includ
ing [dieir] views about
the quality of [their] edu
cation and how [they]
spend [their] time."
The NSSE project is
directed by Grorge Kuh,
Chancellor's Professor
of Higher Education
at Indiana University.
The survey is adminis
tered by The Center for
Survey Research at lU
and is directed by John
Kennedy.
The data that is col
lected from the NSSE
is shared with the
participant's institution,
and that institution can
share its data with other
institutions to see how
it compares. The data is
supposed to show how
the undergraduates at
a particular institution
feel about their institu
tion and their overall
college experience. The
institution may use the
data it receives from ttie
survey to identify areas
Parent? cont. on pg. 4