THE TEMPERATURE WAS STILL PLEASANT that morning on the University of Maryland campus, but the heaviness of the air promised a sultry afternoon common in Maryland summers. The sky was devoid of clouds, but was not blue. The sun's rays were indistinct as they dispersed through the haze. The sun's normal brilliance was unnecessary because the campus was full of beaming students and parents attending one of several freshman orientations. This particular orientation was directed toward honors students.
It was difficult to determine who was more excited at the orientation. The students were awed, though they feigned indifference. How could they not be, as they prepared to embark on four years of intellectual challenge and independence. The vast green spaces and colonial architecture offered the prospect of a student-centered academic universe. Their parents had many reactions. Some grinned quietly as they remembered their own college years some two decades away. That was my reaction. Others could not disguise their pride in the child who was the first in their family to attend college.
After an initial meeting, the first step in the orientation process was to separate the students from their parents. Students went to visit their guidance counselors who would help them register. Parents were corralled into a thankfully air-conditioned auditorium to learn what to expect for the next four years. Some of the advice was banal. We were given a calendar for the academic year. We were told what on-campus students might require. We were advised that students were not required to own computers, but they might find them convenient. Of course, we were told when tuition checks were due. Some advice was inspiring. It was the goal of the university, we were told, not just to teach skills, but to inform and educate for a lifetime, to create whole human beings.
The big surprise came as a popular and animated biology professor informed us that it would be useless to call the student's guidance counselor or professors after a few months and inquire how "Johnny" was doing. Counselors and professors were bound by federal law to protect the privacy of students. Since it was a federal law there was nothing the university could do about it. After all, most were 18 and legally adults. We parents, it seemed, needed to accustom ourselves to letting these young adults sink or swim on their own.
I could not formulate my problem with this information at the time. It just seemed inconsistent to treat a student as an independent adult for the purposes of keeping up with their educational progress, while at the same time parents are asked to fill out financial aid forms each year to determine the family's "expected financial contribution." If the student is an independent adult, why is my money relevant?
| Here's the follow-up discussion on this article: | View all related messages |
For a complete listing of article comments, questions, and other discussions related to Frank Monaldo's Conservative Politics topic, please visit the Discussions page.