From the Dean of Students’ Desk

Welcome to our second issue of the Webster University Newsletter for Parents of First-Year Students. For my column this time I’d like to tell you about a book we’ve been reading, give you some good news, and brag a little about our successful student athletes.

The professional staff members on our Student Affairs team have been reading a book this semester entitled Making the Most of College: Students Speak Their Minds, by Richard Light, a professor from Harvard. Based on ten years of research and interviews with thousands of students, the book offers a bushel of good advice. Educators know that some undergraduates make the most of college while others do not. The book explores what choices students can make to get the most out of college. The author found that there are significant differences in choices and attitudes to distinguish between those who are very happy with their college experience and those who are not.

As we have discussed the first few chapters this past month, we have discovered that many points ring true with our own experiences with students here at Webster. Some of the highlights from the book that seem consistent with what we know about Webster students are listed below:

• The students most satisfied with their college experience are those that make connections between their in-class and out-of-classroom experiences.
  


• When asked what critical incident profoundly changed them the most during college, nine out of ten students select an experience outside of class.
  


• The students who succeed are those that treat time as a precious resource and allocate their time in a much different way than they did in high school. The less successful students don’t think about how they manage their time and just repeat what worked for them in high school.
  


• There is a clear relationship between involvement on campus and satisfaction with college. Involvement can mean joining a student organization, attending campus events, working in an on-campus job, and/or participating in study groups with other students.
  


• 75% of those who are less satisfied with the college experience approached college by “getting the requirements out of the way first” and then going on to things that interested them. The happier, and more successful, students look for classes and experiences that excite them and cause them to get more engaged early in their college experience.
  


• Students mentioned time and again that getting to know students, faculty, and staff from diverse backgrounds was one of the most powerful learning experiences during college.
  

As you can see, the general theme is that students should get involved in college life. Parents can play an important role in encouraging students to find effective ways to get involved on campus and make connections between what they’re learning inside the classroom and what they’re experiencing outside their classes.

Good news. The Edgar Road construction has been completed and it is now much easier for pedestrians and vehicles to traverse the campus from east to west. The new roadway, sidewalks, and curbs are much improved.

This is a very busy time of the year in Webster Athletics. As I write this, our women’s soccer team has won the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) with an unblemished conference record. They are preparing for their fourth consecutive NCAA national championship tournament. The men’s soccer team and women’s volleyball team both took third place in the SLIAC while the women’s cross country team finished fourth in the conference championships. Our swim teams our just getting under way with their seasons, while the men’s and women’s basketball teams are preparing for their season openers later in November. For more up-to-date information, please check out the Athletics website at http://www.webster.edu/athletics/.

We hope to get out one more issue of this newsletter this semester, just before the holiday break. If you have any suggestions for articles, please let me know.

Sincerely,
Ted Hoef
Dean of Students

Comments and Suggestions
We hope to publish this Webster University Newsletter for Parents of First-Year Students at least once every eight weeks. If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future newsletters, please send them to hoeftl@webster.edu. We look forward to your comments and suggestions.