2012 NASPA Annual Conference s Phoenix, Arizona s March 10–14, 2012

The Always Changing, Ever Evolving Field of Parent Involvement

Jeanine Ward-Roof, Ph.D.–The Florida State UniversityAnna Carey – Western Washington University

Mark Roof – The Florida State University

Selected Timeline• 1913 – Gott v. Berea

• 1949 – Student Personnel Point of View

• 1959 – Melvin Hardee research

• 1961 – In Loco Parentis begins to unravel

• 1974 – Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (Lowery, 2011)

• 1988 – 1st edition of “Letting Go: A Parents’ Guide To Today’s College Experience”

Selected Timeline• 1990 – Origin of term helicopter parent

• 1998 – Amendments to FERPA(Lowery, 2011)

• 1990s – substantial increase in parent involvement on college campuses (Howe and Strauss, 2007)

– Large number of Baby Boomers began sending Gen X children to school

– End of family detachment in the 1980s

– College administrators embraced parent involvement

Selected Timeline• 2000 – administrators not prepared for parental involvement

– Parents seen as “intrusive, time-consuming and annoying” (Howe and Strauss, 2007)

– Terms to describe parent behavior emerged• stealth fighter, tandem bicycle, helicopter parent term became more

mainstream; term umbrella parent emerged

• Popular press began addressing parenting college students

• 2010 – CAS Standards for parent and family programs introduced

Current Literature

• Millennials desire more parental involvement than other students in past four decades

– Students rely on advice from parents in almost every aspect of life

– Students contact parents at unprecedented rate(Taylor, 2011)

– Terms emerged for continued connection with families: The Accordion family & Boomerang Kids

(Newman, 2012)

Why?• Generational differences

• Parental cynicism of their college experience

• Power of middle class parent movement

• Fear

• Consumerism

• Accountability(Taylor, 2011 & Howe and Strauss, 2007 )

Different = Similar• Goals for parent programs (Cohen, R. 1985)

– Responsibility for institutional goals

– Ambassadors and Supporters

– Volunteers

– Donors

• Current

– Desired roles may be similar but interactions are more intense

Pilot Survey

• Methodology– Electronic survey created

using Survey Monkey – Distributed to NASPA

Parent and Family Relations Knowledge Community Listserv and to a select group of student affairs colleagues

– 1375 sent– 35 responses (2.5%)– Demographics of

institution size• Small (under 10,000) 14• Med (10-20,000) 4• Large (20,000+) 18• Private 5• Public 20

– Limitation, number of responses

Best Practices• How are people staying

current?– NASPA KC & presentations

– Association of Higher Education Parent/Family Program Professionals – AHEPPP

– Journals, The Chronicle of Higher Education

• Type of Organization – Club with dues - 3– Open, no dues - 24– Invited Membership - 3– Advisory Board - 15– Facet of Alumni

Programs - 9– Fundraising oriented - 7– Hybrid - 4– Other - 4

Type of Organization• National Survey of College and University Parent Programs (M.

Savage, 2011)

– Placement • All institutions

– 58.3% Student Affairs– 24.1% Advancement

• Public – 74.1% Student Affairs– 8.1% Advancement

• Private – 42.1% Student Affairs– 43.2% Advancement

– Creation • 52.2% of programs created since 2000• 31.8% since 2006

Best Practices & Services Provided• Increased application of social networking & technology

– E-newsletters– Online seminars/webinars– Hotlines and email responses to questions

• Increased programming & outreach– Orientation 96.2% (61% 2003)– Family Weekend 91.4% (74.4% 2003)– Fundraising 82.5% (43.9% 2003)– Handbook 76% (12.2.% 2003)– PRINTED newsletter 35.6% (54.9% 2003)(M. Savage, 2011)

Future Trends – Survey Results• Current Practitioners

– Engaging high-capacity donors

– Regional & hometown networks

– Communication during campus crises

– All institutions will establish a parents/family relations office

– The next generation will involve their parents even more therefore, parents will increase their communication with institutes

– Student wellness portals

Future Trends – Pilot Survey Results

• Current Practitioners

– Greater access for parents to academic advisers

– Greater understanding of FERPA among faculty members and a willingness to assist without divulging academic records

– Working with international parents and graduate students

– Needing to invite parental involvement for low-income and first-generation students

– Gen X parents will be more involved than Baby Boomer parents. They will require more tech-heavy info with quicker response times

Future Trends, continued• Next generation of articles, research, books…

– For parents• "The iConnected Parent: Staying Close to Your Kids in College

(and Beyond) While Letting Them Grow Up,” B. Hofer & A. Sullivan Moore

• “The Accordion Family: Boomerang Kids, Anxious Parents, and the Private Toll of Global Competition,” K. Newman

• Recent NY Times, Washington Post, LA Times articles focusing on staying in touch but allowing room to grow

Future Trends, continued• Next generation of articles, research, books…

– For higher education professionals• “Not Quite Adults: Why 20-Somethings Are Choosing a Slower Path to Adulthood,

and Why It's Good for Everyone,” R. Settersten & B. Ray

• “Parents' Perspectives on Parental Notification of College Students' Alcohol Use,” Merith Cosden and Jennifer B. Hughes, Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice (2012)

• ‘In Community with Students’ Parents and Families,” J. Donovan, D. McKelfresh, , Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice (2006)

• Webinars & seminars– Parent Perspectives: A Panel Discussion of what Parents Need, Want and Value from a College – Parent & Family Issues 2012, Paper Clip Communications

Conclusions and Questions

• Keep focus on supporting student

Resources• Association of Higher Education Parent/Family Program Professionals –

AHEPPP - http://www.aheppp.org/• Cohen, R. (1985). Working with the Parents of College Students. New

Directions for Student Services.• Howe, N. & Strauss, W. (2007). Millennials go to college. Life Course

Associates.• Magolda, P & Baxter Magolda, M. (2011). Contested Issues in Student

Affairs: Diverse Perspective and Respectful Dialogue (specifically, Lowery & Taylor chapters on parents)

• NASPA Parent and Family Relations KC – www.NASPA.org• Newman, K. (2012). The Accordion Family: Boomerang Kids, Anxious Parents,

and the Private Toll of Global Competition.• Savage, M (2011). National Survey of College and University Parent Programs

- http://www1.umn.edu/parent/about/survey-reports/index.html

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2012 NASPA Annual Conference DVD-ROM

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