Saint Mary’s kicked off its premiere First Year Parents' Weekend, hosted by the Student Government Association (SGA) and Student Affairs, Friday evening.
Freshman class president Caroline Koenig said the weekend was arranged for freshmen and their parents in order to bring families together sooner in the school year.
“A lot of people felt as though it was too long to wait until Sophomore Parents' Weekend to see students' parents,” she said.
Saint Mary's president Carol Ann Mooney addressed attendees at dinner, which Koenig said was exciting for the student body. Mooney called the transition between first year and sophomore year a critical one, filled with a lot of important decisions, Koenig said.
“This is the first time Saint Mary’s has hosted a weekend like this for first year parents,” Mooney said. “We were talking about the fact that we had events for parents every year, and we thought the first year parents' event was orientation.
"But then we realized that a lot happens between the date of orientation and the time we host Sophomore Parents' [Weekend]. … It was a long time between seeing you and welcoming you to campus, so we decided to make a change.”
The events scheduled for the weekend included different programs for parents and students to attend, Koenig said.
“We decided to keep the events simple because it is the first First Year Parents' Weekend,” she said. “We started off with check-in on Friday, and then on Saturday there were a number of information sessions as well as Riedinger House tours.”
Programming included presentations on study abroad and the various programs offered at Saint Mary’s, Koenig said. Panel sessions featured professors and alumnae speaking about their experiences at the College and after graduation.
“The main event of the weekend was a big dinner at the Hilton on Saturday night," she said. "This included a DJ, a photo booth for students and parents to take pictures and the president of the College."
Koenig said the ultimate purpose of the event was to give parents the opportunity to get involved with the students after the completion of their first semester.
“I hope that everyone had fun with their parents, and [their parents] got to see campus a little differently,” she said. “We’ve been here six months, and a lot has changed.”
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