A Letter to Your Students

I am still under the weather, so I am bringing you an item from the archives today.

Today is a homework assignment, Deac families: to write a letter to your students and mail it the day before they move in for the fall semester. I know texts and emails are faster, but writing a paper letter to your students might be more valuable. It’s in your handwriting, it can be saved and cherished.

Here is a template (feel free to sub your own items):

Dear [name of your Deac]

As you get ready to start the year at Wake, I/we want to share a few of my/our hopes for you.

I/we hope you experience __________ [fill in].

I/we hope you learn __________ [fill in].

I/we hope you love __________ [fill in].

I/we hope you never forget __________ [fill in].

I/we challenge you to __________ [fill in].

Don’t worry about __________ [fill in].

Always remember that __________ [fill in].

We love you, are proud of you, and know you are going to be great this year.

Love,

[your name(s)]

If you need a refresher on how to mail USPS mail to your Deacs, see our Mail Services page. Note to our P’26 families, new students’ PO Boxes are not assigned until around August 1, so you will have to come back to get the address later this summer.

Words matter, and letters from your loved ones matter. Great letters are a lost art (like that of the mixtapes you’d make for your significant other – I’m showing my Gen X side here :))

Get to it, Deac families. Your Deacs will love having a proper letter from you in their PO Boxes a day or two after they arrive.

— by Betsy Chapman, Ph.D. (’92, MA ’94)