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from the issue of September 21, 2006
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Faculty presence impacts Parents Weekend
BY TROY FEDDERSON, UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS
Kevin and Julie Bachman couldn't wait to brag about their son's university.
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| | | FACULTY-LED TOUR - Dean Sicking, director of the Midwest Roadside Safety Facility and assistant professor of civil engineering, guides parents of first-year students through laboratory space in the Walter Scott Engineering Center on Sept. 16. Below, Bill and Rosemary Eastwood watch Sicking's presentation on the SAFER wall, an auto racing safety wall developed at UNL. Photo by Troy Fedderson/University Communications.
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Participating in Parents Weekend, Sept. 15-17, the Bachmans sat with 50 other parents and students as Dean Sicking, director of the Midwest Roadside Safety Facility and assistant professor of civil engineering, explained how UNL engineers developed the SAFER wall to help improve track safety for auto racers.
"We don't really watch racing at all, but thought that presentation would be very interesting," said Kevin Bachman, father of Jacob, a freshman business major. "It really says a lot about the program that NASCAR and IRL would come to Nebraska to help improve track safety.
"I can't wait to tell my friends that those walls on the race tracks were developed at UNL."
Organized by Student Affairs, Parents Weekend drew 376 parents and their first-year students. Mary Guest of Student Affairs, who helped organize the event, said attendance was up slightly from 2005.
The three-day event included time for parents and students to get reacquainted, while also offering them the opportunity to tour campus facilities, experience UNL entertainment options and - in a new addition - interact directly with faculty.
"Before this year, Parents Weekend offered tours of buildings and recruitment information," Guest said. "This year we offered not only tours of the buildings, but presentations by actual faculty members. And, the presentations were a big draw."
Sicking's auto-racing presentation helped the College of Engineering show a dramatic increase in the Othmer Hall tour. Guest said the tour a year ago attracted 10 parents and students. This year, nearly 90 signed up for the Sicking presentation and Othmer Tour, with 52 attending.
"We are from Lincoln, so we are fairly familiar with campus," said Julie Bachman. "But it was great to actually interact with Professor Sicking. It gave us a good idea about the quality of professors at this university."
Other faculty exposure for parents included: a Sept. 15 ragtime performance by Jack Oliva, dean of the Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts; a tour of Andersen Hall and presentation of the student-produced tsunami/Hurricane Katrina Depth Report documentary by Jerry Renaud and Amy Struthers of the College of Journalism and Mass Communications; a tour of the Center for Great Plains Studies and presentation by Reece Summers, curator of the Great Plains Art Gallery; a tour of Morrill Hall, hosted by Priscilla Grew, director of the University of Nebraska State Museum; and presentations by Juan Franco, vice chancellor for Student Affairs, and Rita Kean, dean of the Office of Undergraduate Studies.
Franco said that was the reason faculty were encouraged to take part.
"It is important for the parents to see the faculty that their sons and daughters are engaged with," Franco said. "They need to know how much the faculty do and how much they care for students.
"This weekend is above and beyond the call of duty for faculty. But their involvement is a key component to its success."
When asked to provide a faculty influence, Sicking immediately agreed.
"I don't think any of these parents want to come here and listen to a student talk about being an engineer," Sicking said. "They want someone who is knowledgeable about the field and want some assurances that their student is getting something out of the money they are putting toward this.
"They also want to get to know the people who are having a huge influence on the continued development of their children."
| | FAMILY SHOT - William, Kathy and Byron Baule of Eugene, Ore., get their picture taken with Husker cheerleaders and Lil' Red at Memorial Stadium. Families taking part in Parents Weekend were able to tour Memorial Stadium and other Athletics facilities. Photo by Troy Fedderson/University Communications.
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However, Sicking readily admits that his presentation - which featured cars crashing at 150-plus miles per hour - played a role in the increased attendance at Othmer Hall.
"Our daughter is a psychology major and we decided to attend this session because we are big NASCAR fans," said Rosemary Eastwood of Lincoln. "We knew about the SAFER wall. But it was still fascinating to learn about how it was developed right here in Lincoln."
While parents walked away with a better understanding of campus programs and facilities, the weekend was also about reconnecting with their children a month into their college education.
"We came first hand to see how our son was doing," said Kathy Baule, who traveled 1,362 miles from Eugene, Ore., with her husband Byron to see their son William, a meteorology major. "We were told we traveled the most miles out of everyone to participate this weekend. But, we would do it again because this is a great opportunity."
GO TO: ISSUE OF SEPTEMBER 21
NEWS HEADLINES FOR SEPTEMBER 21
Faculty presence impacts Parents Weekend
Mid-semester check events begin Sept. 25
Fine and Performing Arts, Extension partnership grows
LINE DANCING
MIA SALUTE
UNL hosts Midwest Service-Learning Conference
732575S36187X
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