Parents Get Brief Glimpse Of Life as Harvard Student

Despite grumbling about Harvard’s inability to control the rainy weather, hundreds of parents came to Cambridge this Freshman Parents’ Weekend to visit their children in the Class of 2006.

For many students, this meant cleaning their rooms and introducing their parents to some of their more responsible friends. Others brought their parents to classes.

“I find it interesting to see how the students are getting a crash course on how to become independent, and how they are trying their best to show their parents that they have mastered the skills,” said parent Bill Duke.

Some parents expressed doubt about the accuracy of the glance they gleaned of their children’s Harvard lives this weekend. One parent said she overheard upperclass students expressing relief that parties would be smaller this weekend, with the absence of first-years.

The major concern for most parents, however, was that they didn’t get to see much of their children.

Choon Lee, a parent who has both a sophomore and a first-year daughter, said the weekend’s timing was horrible both this year and last year. Lee said after bringing his daughter to the hotel, she spent all night long studying for midterms.

But other parents said they understand they couldn’t spend every hour with their children.

“After six weeks of not seeing [our son], even a couple of hours is a gift,” said parent Kelley Fead.

While the Parents’ Association was generally praised for a great job, many parents complained that most activities were concentrated in a two-hour period on Friday and nothing substantial was planned for Saturday. Others commented on the crowded rooms in which the activities took place.

“It was too crowded at most events, and especially at the Larry Summers speech, many parents had to stand and some of them had to leave,” said parent Sandy Friedman. “The activities should have been in larger rooms. Did they not expect us?”

Those parents who did get to see the president speak said they were very impressed.

“I thought Larry Summers was excellent,” said parent Craig Rowna. “I liked the points he made and his body language. He grabs the podium like he will pick it up and leave with it. He was not afraid to take a stand, and answered very tough questions about the [Afro]-American [studies] department. I left the room understanding why he was the president.”

And while few of their children were likely to agree, many parents said the food served in Annenberg Hall was great.

“I have been to three different schools and this is not typical dormitory food,” said Chinwe Nwazota. “This is great food, served in an amazing dining hall.”

Parents also flocked to the Freshman Musical’s rendition of Measure for Measure and the Instant Gratification Players’ improv show.

While many students said they appreciated seeing their parents, a good portion of the Class of 2006 agreed that the weekend was poorly organized, as no activities were planned for students to do with parents.

Most students did find activities to do with their parents, often involving shopping and going out to eat.

“The best parents are those who understand their duties as the parents of a college student—they send money when we need it, they visit infrequently and, when they do visit, they take us out to dinner whenever we want and buy us whatever we need,” said Joe R. Geschlecht ’06.

By the end of the weekend, several students were happy to see their parents leave.

“It was great seeing my parents, but after the first day it became a little annoying,” said Sarah M.J. Welch ’06. “They started lecturing about getting more sleep and doing more homework, I was happy to see them leave even though I love them so much.”