There’s an easy way for professors to address this. Tell the parent: you are not enrolled in my class. Come talk to me after you are enrolled as my student.
How (Over)involved Parents Are Changing College
Colleges are adjusting to increasing contact with adults who are more ingrained in their children’s lives than ever. But Hamilton had a slightly different take on universities’ motivations for incorporating parents more zealously into the college experience: State support for public higher-education institutions has been declining precipitously in recent years, and schools have been forced to cut administrative expenses.
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Some colleges “provide a parent-and-guardian track during student orientation and create webinars for parents on topics like homesickness and career services,” while others have created parent “leadership councils,” she writes. “Universities also reach out to parents with weekly newsletters, Facebook pages, and web chats.”
Stacy G.’s daughter was having a meltdown. Her daughter, a sophomore at a prestigious private college, wanted an internship at Boston Children’s Hospital, a plum job that would look great on her applications to graduate school. After four weeks of frantically waiting for the school to arrange for an interview at the hospital, Stacy called her daughter’s adviser at the internships office to complain.
“For $65,000 [in full attendance costs], you can bet your sweet ass that I’m calling that school … If your children aren’t getting what they’ve been promised, colleges are going to get that phone call from parents,” Stacy said. “It’s my money. It’s a lot of money.”
Parents have stepped up their involvement “because of technology, employment concerns, and the high price of college,” writes McKenna. Many fear their children will make the wrong choices and end up living in the basement through their 20s.
HT: Joanne Jacobs