Managing the 21st Century Parent

Engaging with parents has become a major challenge for many colleges. It's not just "helicopter" parents—known to be affluent and demanding—who complain these days about their children's grades, job prospects, housing, roommates, and much more. Parents increasingly see themselves as consumers, and question the value of a college education. Colleges also worry that students aren't becoming independent enough. At the same time, many institutions are seeking more engagement with families of low-income and first-generation students, who often may not understand college culture.

This issue brief will examine how colleges navigate the crucial parental / family relationship. Many college leaders cite the goal of making parents partners. “We’re no longer accepting just a student," says the director of family relations at one college. "We’re accepting an entire support group.”

Purchase the issue brief and learn:

• How colleges are managing the growing expectations of parents and other family members
• Why more institutions are creating programs to help families of first-generation students better understand college
• How colleges advise parents when to back off and when to intervene in their children's lives.
• What the pandemic has taught colleges about reaching out to families

Date: December 2021
Pages: 42
Digital file size: 1.8 MB

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