By Joanne Goldwater, Associate Dean for Retention & Student Success\/Seahawk Family Liaison<\/p>\n
At St. Mary\u2019s College of Maryland\u2014the National Public Honors College\u2014we deeply value the partnership between families and the College. Parents and families play an essential role in helping students make the transition from home to campus life. We know how much you care about your student\u2019s well-being and success. You\u2019ve been there every step of the way\u2014cheering them on, guiding their choices and helping them navigate challenges.<\/p>\n
Just because your child is now a college student, your role doesn\u2019t disappear\u2014but it does change. Our job as educators is to help students take the lead in their own lives: to become independent thinkers, problem solvers and decision makers. Your job, as parents and families, is to shift from being in the driver\u2019s seat to being a trusted co-pilot\u2014still offering wisdom and encouragement, but letting your student steer.<\/p>\n
We See Families as Partners, Not Pilots<\/strong><\/p>\n We love that our SMCM parents care deeply. We also know that sometimes that care can turn into a bit too much control. Over the years, we\u2019ve met every kind of family: helicopters<\/strong> who hover, lawnmowers<\/strong> who smooth every bump, snow plows<\/strong> who clear every obstacle, drones<\/strong> who monitor from afar and mama (and papa) bears<\/strong> ready to protect at the first sign of trouble.<\/p>\n We understand those instincts\u2014they come from love. But college is the time for students to learn how to wake themselves up for class, solve their own roommate conflicts and speak directly with professors or staff when issues arise. When families step back a little, students step up a lot.<\/p>\n Our goal is to help your student develop confidence, resilience and the ability to handle life\u2019s challenges independently. We don\u2019t go to your student\u2019s room to wake them up for class\u2014and neither should you.<\/p>\n We Support Student Independence<\/strong><\/p>\n At St. Mary\u2019s College, students learn to think critically, act ethically and take responsibility for their choices. This growth takes time\u2014and sometimes a few missteps. We encourage you to coach from the sidelines rather than take the field. Ask guiding questions like, \u201cWhat\u2019s your plan to handle that?\u201d or \u201cWho could you talk to on campus about this?\u201d These small shifts empower students to problem-solve and build self-confidence.<\/p>\n Your trust allows us to do our best work: helping students make connections, find purpose and discover their own voice.<\/p>\n We Respect Student Privacy (and Encourage Communication)<\/strong><\/p>\n We often hear from parents who want updates about grades, attendance or conduct. Under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)<\/strong>, we cannot share a student\u2019s educational records\u2014including grades\u2014without their written consent. While this may feel frustrating at first, FERPA helps students take ownership of their academic journey and learn accountability.<\/p>\n We encourage families to have open conversations with their student about how and when to share information. At the same time, as the Seahawk Family Liaison, I am always happy to discuss general policies, processes and campus resources. If you have a concern, I\u2019ll listen, offer guidance and connect you to the right place\u2014while still respecting your student\u2019s privacy.<\/p>\n We\u2019re in This Together<\/strong><\/p>\n You are not being pushed out\u2014you\u2019re being invited to walk beside your student in a new way. According to Grace Seemiller, \u201cGen Zers\u2019 top role models are their parents\u2026.\u201d (Seemiller, Grace: Generation Z: A Century in the Making). Think of yourself as a co-pilot<\/strong>: you have valuable experience and perspective, but your student is learning to fly solo. With your encouragement and our support, they\u2019ll develop the skills, confidence and independence they need for life beyond college.<\/p>\n At St. Mary\u2019s College of Maryland, we take pride in fostering a community of care where families, faculty and staff all work together to help students succeed. Thank you for trusting us with your student\u2019s journey. We\u2019re honored to partner with you as they grow, learn and take flight as proud Seahawks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Joanne Goldwater, Associate Dean for Retention & Student Success\/Seahawk Family Liaison At St. Mary\u2019s College of Maryland\u2014the National Public Honors College\u2014we deeply value the partnership between families and the College. Parents and families play an essential role in helping students make the transition from home to campus life. We know how much you care Find out more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":234,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1184","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-parent-family-resources","7":"entry"},"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.smcm.edu\/office-student-success-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1184","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.smcm.edu\/office-student-success-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.smcm.edu\/office-student-success-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smcm.edu\/office-student-success-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/234"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smcm.edu\/office-student-success-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1184"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.smcm.edu\/office-student-success-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1184\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1194,"href":"https:\/\/www.smcm.edu\/office-student-success-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1184\/revisions\/1194"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.smcm.edu\/office-student-success-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1184"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smcm.edu\/office-student-success-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1184"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smcm.edu\/office-student-success-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1184"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}