Deep Breaths

Today’s Daily Deac is borrowing some terrific language from Adam Goldstein, Associate Vice President and Dean of Students, that he shared with members of his team a week or so ago. With his permission, I’ve adapted this a bit for the family perspective:

We all know what August means!  It means our first-year students are filled to the brim with anxious energy and excitement as they prepare to leave home for Wake Forest!

Most first-year students are excited, but also nervous about many things: Will I like it here?  Will I get along with my roommate? Will I find friends? Where are my classes going to be? What will my professors be like? What will college life be like? Please, oh please, don’t let my parents/family members embarrass me on move-in day 🙂

As we prepare for our students to move to campus, it is important to reflect on their state of mind. And that’s worth us, as adults, trying to take a step back and remember what it felt like to be 18 and at your first day of college, or starting a new job in a new city. What did that feel like? 

Did you wear your best outfit (or the outfit you thought people would like the most)? 

Do you remember what it felt like to be disoriented and a little lost (How do I get from class to the Pit? OMG! Who will I eat with?) 

Do you remember second-guessing something you said (Awkward! I should have said this instead…) 

This is the headspace where many (most? all?) of our new students will be. They will carry this nervous energy in a way unique to them, but they will all feel it in some way.  

Here’s the great news for families during this time of transition: we can all help ease our new students’ minds. Offer them your full attention – plus good eye contact, a warm smile, a friendly and empathetic ear if they talk to you about being nervous about the start of school.

Talk to them about a transition you went through – and how you survived! Or remind them of a time they had a big transition – and managed it successfully.

Take some deep breaths, and remind your student to do the same. Wake Forest is filled with faculty and staff who want to help your students in any way we can. We just need your students to let us know when they need us.

— by Betsy Chapman, Ph.D. (’92, MA ’94) with a huge assist from Dean Goldstein

August 11, 2022