The migration of parents and guardians to the Choate campus marks the arrival of the long-awaited annual Parents Weekend. Parents will have a wide assortment of activities to appreciate the vibrant school community to which their children contribute.
Taking place during one of the busiest weekends of the year, Parents Weekend allows parents and guardians to experience the academic and social atmosphere of the school, a privilege that their children enjoy during their annual Choate careers.
Various Choate departments, including the six academic departments, Communications Office, Facilities, Admissions Office, and Development Office, have collaborated to “ensure that the necessary infrastructure is in place for the parents,” explained coordinator of Parents Weekend Libby Peard. Together they have produced the Parents Weekend brochure, which explains the schedule of events from Thursday, October 18 to Saturday October 20.
Parents started arriving yesterday. Members of the Admissions team and some academic departments will oversee the registration booth in the Paul Mellon Arts Center Gallery. First on the agenda, Headmaster Shanahan’s annual Reception will kick off Parents Weekend and allow parents to congregate.
Parent-teacher conferences are a hallmark of Parents Weekend. Similar to last year’s schedule, they will be held on Thursday evening from 7:00 to 9:30 p.m. and Friday afternoon from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Parents will navigate the Johnson Athletic Center for eight minute meetings with their children’s teachers.
New this year, students were no longer required to “walk around with sign up sheets and get to each teacher before their peers did” to schedule their parents’ meetings, said Mrs. Peard. Instead, an online system was designed by ITS and publicized by the Communications Office to allow parents to sign up for their conferences without using their children as middlemen. Mrs. Peard commented, “It [the online system] was well received with parents and they liked the idea that they had control over determining what times work well for them.”
In addition to the faculty conference tables in the Johnson Athletic Center, the Choate library staffs a “Give a Book to the Library” Table every year. The Andrew Mellon Library staff spends the year reading reviews and selecting approximately 200 books which “are appropriate to add to the library collection and attractive enough that they would appeal to the parents passing by the table,” explained librarian Craig Warren, who works at the table. Mr. Warren said, “I really enjoy meeting the parents and talking about the books, which generate a lot of enthusiasm in conversations.”
On Friday, October 19 and Saturday, October 20, parents will have the opportunity to join their children in class. On these days students follow a thirty minute class schedule, which allows parents to preview all of their children’s classes. Mrs. Peard said, “[Class Visits] give parents a chance to really get a feel of what it is like to be a Choate student. Each year it is so heartening that they come away feeling so great about the place, and the faculty does an amazing job showing parents what they show you all… Parents love it!”
Mathematics teacher Fred Djang noticed that “parents love to be associated with kids, but kids sometimes have a problem with that.” To his credit, some students feel that Parents Weekend alters their class experience. However, Vishal Khandheria’09 expressed concern with hosting parents in classes: “I think that the idea of having parents in classes changes the curriculum of the teachers and forces them to change their daily class procedures, thus not truly reflecting the Choate experience.”
Students React
On the contrary, Timothy Ibbotson-Sindelar’09 stated his support for parent’s class visits: “Parents Weekend is a good idea because parents want to see the kids and teachers in action and understand how the classes work.” He acknowledged, however, that “classes are changed so much from the regular day to get parents interested.”
Preparing for Parents
Regardless of some student opposition of parents visiting classes, Mr. Djang emphasized that this weekend is truly their weekend, and “parents are like guests here, so we try to treat them like guests.”
Parents will have the opportunity to meet other parents from their children’s form Friday evening. Mrs. Peard explained the reasoning behind these parent form meetings: “Parents don’t feel quite as connected in a boarding school environment to the parents of their children’s friends.”
Friday Ends
To end their busy Friday, parents can relax during the Arts Department concert at 7:30. The annual concert in the Paul Mellon Arts Center Main Theater will present musical performances by the orchestra, chamber orchestra, band, jazz band, chorus and chamber chorus. The concert will be followed by desserts and singing by Choate’s a cappella groups.
Whimawehs’ co-president Lauren Provini’08 explained, “Both the Arts Department and a cappella concert give students a chance to showcase all that they have done this fall. I’m especially excited for the Whimawehs performance.”
Parents can culminate their hectic weekend by cheering on their children as they take on Hotchkiss Saturday afternoon. All athletic contests will be held on Choate fields, and the Tuck Shop will host a concession stand adjacent to the varsity football field.
Parents React
Parents Weekend has been generally praised by parents. Mrs. Peard said, “Parents are thrilled by what they see, and so many have said through the years that they want to be students again. They feel awfully good about what their children have at their disposal on campus.”
Director of Communications Mary Verselli stated, “Parents are very happy that their sons and daughters are here; they enjoy meeting the faculty, seeing their kids in class, and watching students compete in sports. It is a very positive weekend to bring everybody together and celebrate all the great things about this school.”
No More Rain
Although severe rain storms have upset the last two Parents Weekends, Mrs. Peard and the other organizers of the event hope that rain does not blemish the weekend this year.
