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Your Student’s Transition In College Is Like A Roller Coaster: How To Help Them On The Ride Of Their Life. Part Three -- Initial Adjustment and Mental Isolation Phases

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Ted Hoef

By the time you are reading this, your son or daughter is in the process of starting his/her second semester at the University as undergraduate classes resume on January 12. I hope you were able to spend some nice time together over the holiday break.

Campus Speaker Helps Punctuate Year of International Human Rights
Ishmael Beah, author of A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier, the book that was read by all freshmen as part of the Freshman Seminars, spoke to a large crowd of approximately 700 in Grant Gymnasium on Wednesday, December 3. Mr. Beah captivated the audience of students, faculty, staff, alumni, and campus visitors, with stories from his life growing up in Sierra Leone where he was forced to serve as a child soldier. His appearance, a highlight of the Year of International Human Rights at Webster, was sponsored by the Multicultural Center and International Student Affairs and was made possible by the Student Activities Fee. This program was the culmination of a strong collaboration between faculty in the Freshman Seminar program, the College of Arts and Sciences and several departments within Student Affairs. It is the first time that Webster University has had a common reading for all freshmen and brought the author to campus to speak with students. More information about Ishmael Beah and his appearance on campus can be found at the following links:

http://www.webster.edu/depts/artsci/news/Ishmael_Beah.htm
http://www.alongwaygone.com/ishmael_beah.html

It was great to see our students and faculty actively engaged in this program, asking intelligent questions, and waiting in line to get their books signed. Mr. Beah is a remarkable young man who has overcome unimaginable adversity, and our students enjoyed the opportunity to hear him speak on campus. We received a ton of very positive comments from students, faculty, alumni, and members of the community including teachers and high school students who were also in attendance.

Career Services
Has your son or daughter utilized the terrific services offered by our professionals in the Career Services department? If not, please encourage them to do so this semester. Some might think that the freshman year is too early to begin using Career Services. We just had two consultants on campus, directors of the career centers at DePaul University and Arcadia University. One of the main themes of their report is that students do not start using Career Services early enough.

For freshman, the first year in college is the time to begin evaluating their values, interests, personality characteristics and skills and identify how these relate to potential majors and careers.

• Enroll in core courses and identify academic areas and subjects that interest you.
• Preview the student catalog and review courses. Learn about the academic resources that are available to you at Webster University.
• Create a plan by establishing academic goals and objectives.
• Identify activities that you enjoy, and try to incorporate at least one of these into your academic and work life.
• Work in a part-time or volunteer position to gain career-related skills such as customer service and communication skills, organizational abilities, teamwork, etc.
• Participate in programs offered by the Career Services office to learn more about different career fields.
• Utilize resources in the library to explore career information.
• Talk with people working in careers of interest to you.
• Utilize SIGI3, an on-line system of career information, for additional skill and interest assessment, career exploration and job search planning; SIGI3 is available through the Career Services website.
• If you are still exploring academic and career options, schedule an appointment with the Career Services office for more information.

Students can contact the Career Services office by calling 314-968-6982 or 1-800-981-9805 and schedule an appointment to:

• Discuss individual career concerns related to choice of major, choice of career field or career transition.
• Arrange to take career assessments which may assist students in identifying their interests and help them to explore career options.
• Learn about resources which will help students to explore specific careers and obtain detailed information about job tasks, employment outlook, etc.

Athletics
Congratulations to the sixteen Gorlok student athletes who were named to the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) All-Academic Team. The recipients were varsity members of Webster’s cross country, soccer, and volleyball squads for the Fall 2008 season. Other selection criteria include: (1) Minimum 3.5 cumulative grade point average, (2) At least sophomore academic standing and (3) Have at least one full year at current institution (first year transfers and true freshmen are not eligible).

Presidential Search
Two finalists for the president of Webster University will participate in campus-wide interviews on January 14 and 15. Students will have the opportunity to visit with these two finalists at a session specifically set up for students at 2:30 p.m. on each day. Three students have served as members of the presidential search committee, which also included six faculty, five administrators, six trustees, and one staff member. The names of the two finalists are Dr. Neil George, currently interim president at Webster University, and Dr. Elizabeth Stroble, currently the Senior Vice President and Provost, Chief Operating Officer at the University of Akron Their CV’s have been posted on the University website at http://www.webster.edu/news/releases/presidentialsearchupdate_080991.shtml.

We hope to have another newsletter out to you in February. We’d love to get your suggestions for future articles.

Happy New Year!

Sincerely,

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