Junior Parents Weekend Showcases the College

The gentle weather seemed made to order as more than 1,000 parents flooded the campus for Junior Parents Weekend to visit their sons and daughters.

Julia G. Fox, director of the Harvard College Parents Association and coordinator of the weekend, estimated that between 1,000 and 1,200 family members or guests attended, including parents and siblings.

"I think it went well--I got lots of compliments from the parents I talked to, and heard a lot of good things," said Katherine K. Jo '01, co-chair of the Junior Parent Weekend Committee.

Jo said the weekend accomplished its goal of bringing juniors and their parents closer together.

"Our fear is that students and parents grow distant after spending a couple of years away here," she said. "It was a kind of speaking the unspoken, because parents...were wondering if what we're going through is normal. The career panels, like the 'Life After Harvard' one, reassured them that it's okay for us to be undecided."

Juniors agreed that the event helped parents understand their lives.

"It was the first time my parents had come here since Freshman Week, so it was nice to show them all the things I'd been talking about for two years," Jennifer Y. Cho '01 said.

But for others, the weekend was merely an ordinary visit with family.

Eileen K. Bent '01, who is from Somerville, said she sees her parents frequently, but she enjoyed the chance to be together anyway.

"I enjoyed going out to dinner with them more than doing any other activities," Bent said. "We talked about summer jobs, and my parents were really interested in hearing the [Office of Career Service] panels."

Many agreed that the scheduled events--which included campus and library tours and lectures like 'Moral Energy of the Young' or 'Religious Pluralism in America'--were not the primary attraction.

"It's always cool to spend time with my parents and hang around Boston and Cambridge," Alicia E. Ingalls '01 said. "We didn't really talk about big issues like a career or anything as much as just big things going on my life."

But Amy C. Offner '01 said that a talk by Dean of the College Harry R. Lewis '68 provided unintentional amusement.

Last year, Lewis's speech was preempted by members of the Living Wage campaign, in which Offner is active.

"I guess that disturbed Dean Lewis a lot, because this year the hall was crawling with police, and his speech was cut short and to the point," she said. "My parents thought it was pretty funny."

Daniel Koski-Karell, whose son Arthur is a junior, said his family pursued a relaxed schedule.

"We went out to eat and attended the services at Memorial Church," he said. "He filled us in on his activities and what he was doing with Let's Go."

Arthur E. Koski-Karell '01 took the chance to confess his alternative summer plans.

"I told them my travel plans for the summer, which don't include working," he said. "They like coming up here because it's the only time they find out what I'm up to."

Parent activities for the weekend included classes and performances by musical and arts groups.

The Opportunes, the Immediate Gratification Players and the 'Cliffe Notes performed during the weekend.

But Fox said the chance to see family members was what mattered most.

"I think the parents just really enjoyed spending time with their kids, meeting their kids' friends and getting to know the other parents," she said.