It’s quite a feeling -- one almost beyond words -- when you realize that your son or daughter will actually be leaving home for perhaps the longest period of time in their young lives when they head off to Champlain College.

You’re probably already feeling a mix of anticipation and trepidation, of hopefulness and anxiety over your upcoming separation. You’re not alone! Your child is feeling the same things, although their context for those emotions is, of course, quite different from your own. Will they fit in? Will they get along with their roommate, will they like their room, be able to find their way around campus, will they do well academically? Your love and support will give them an extra layer of confidence as you send them off to this new adventure.

Orientation

During Orientation Weekend, we’ll have many events and activities to help your child become acclimated to Champlain College and our campus. That afternoon you may find your child eager to break away with their Orientation Leader and many new friends. Let them go! This is your chance to steal some time for yourselves and head down the hill to the city of Burlington, where you can stroll along the Church Street Marketplace, stop for a snack at an outside café, drop in on the many shops, or pick out a restaurant to return with your child during Family Weekend. This year's Student Orientation runs August 29th through September 1st 2008. We hope you will encourage your student to join us for all the fun.

Starting Out

Regardless of what responsibilities your child had at home, he or she will now be in charge of everything: finances, laundry, time management for studying and free time (always a learning experience!) and the many other things they’ll have to do to create a schedule that works for them.

It’s also the time in their lives when the responsibility for their education appropriately shifts from school to student. No one will be there to cajole them into action, to remind them of this and that to do, to tell them they’d better in gear because their paper is due! Getting to class, completing homework assignments, preparing for tests and keeping in contact with their professors are part of the process that they’ll have to get used to. But your child will not be in this alone. He or she will have a number of resources and support services at their disposal to help him or her with transitioning should they need it.

Parents of Prospective Students

We know that you have a unique set of concerns and interests. Please check out our Prospective Parents page for information that you may find of interest.