tcu parent & family magazine, vol 1/ issue 5, july/august 2014

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Parent & Family Magazine Volume 1/ Issue 5

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The TCU Parent & Family Magazine is a publication from Student Development Services in the Division of Student Affairs at Texas Christian University.

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Page 1: TCU Parent & Family Magazine, Vol 1/ Issue 5, July/August 2014

Parent & Family Magazine Volume 1/ Issue 5

Page 2: TCU Parent & Family Magazine, Vol 1/ Issue 5, July/August 2014

The TCU Parent & Family Magazine is a publication from

Student Development Services in the Division of Student Affairs at

Texas Christian University.

2901 Stadium Drive Brown-Lupton University Union

Suite 2003 Fort Worth, TX 76129

[email protected]

817-257-7855

TCU Mission:To educate individuals to think and act as ethical leaders and

responsible citizens in the global community.

TCU Vision:To be a world-class, values-centered

university.

Connect with TCU news, social media, photos, and more at www.newsevents.tcu.edu

July/August 2014

Contents:

Kay’s ColumnA Message from the Director of Parent & Family Programs

For New Students Inquiring Minds Want to Know A Collection of Information We Know You Will Need

The Best Year of Their Lives A Message from the Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Dean of Campus Life

Your First-Year Horned Frog Helpful Information for Supporting Your First-Year Student

Connections Leadership Development Program for Incoming Students

Supporting Your TCU Transfer StudentHow Parent & Family Members Can Help Their Transfer Student be Successful at TCU

Sophomore Week At TCU

Page 3: TCU Parent & Family Magazine, Vol 1/ Issue 5, July/August 2014

Parent & Family Magazine

Greetings!

Welcome to our first summer magazine! If you are a new family, the majority of this magazine is for you. If you are a returning family, you remember how much you wanted to know at this point when your son or daughter was preparing to go

to college. Most of what you will need to know is in this column. We will be back on schedule with “something for everyone” in our September magazine.

All Parents

“WE NEED YOU” InventoryThere is a brief inventory titled, “WE NEED YOU!” Often parents outside of the Fort Worth/Dallas metroplex think that there is no way that you can be helpful to TCU so you don’t read more than the first line of the invitation. We need all parents. This inventory will offer you the opportunity to show interest in a number of program areas, with specific kinds of activities included. Check all that apply. We can use your assistance in programming efforts with Admission, Student Affairs and especially, the Office of Career & Professional Development. https://orgsync.com/36800/forms/107265

Internships are the number one most important way that students find employment upon graduation. We need to be able to connect our students with internships in every state in this country and every country around the globe. In order to be able to help our students, please help us.

If you or someone you know works for an employer who provides internships, send me the contact information. If you own a dry cleaner or a cab company, instead of thinking, “I don’t have internships here,” think about whose clothes you clean or who you take to the airport. Ask if they have or have considered offering internships to college students, and give the contact information to us. Our career development staff will be excited to follow-up.

Family Weekend September 12 – 14, 2014As most of you know by now, Family Weekend is September 12 – 14, 2014.If you are not local and you only might come to Family Weekend, make your hotel reservations now! You can always cancel if you are unable to attend. You may not be able to get convenient reservations if you wait. The link for Family Weekend with all the necessary information is www.familyweekend.tcu.edu.

Two important events scheduled during Family Weekend

Second-Year Pinning CeremonyNow in its third year, the Second-Year Pinning is a ceremonial step to the next year of development and challenge. All students with sophomore hours are invited to participate. The ceremony is scheduled on Friday, September 12, on the first day of Family Weekend, to allow parents and family members to attend.

Senior Ring CeremonyWhen the Official TCU Class Ring was designed, the Senior Ring Ceremony was born. The Senior Ring Ceremony is an exciting time of honor and recognition that one’s son/daughter will be completing the academic requirements necessary to graduate this year. The event is scheduled at 2 p.m. on Sunday, September 14, the last day of Family Weekend. If your student is a senior and needs to purchase a ring, he/she may contact the Alumni Office at 817.257.7803 or Jostens at www.jostens.com or by calling 800.854.7464.

Football Ticket information for Family Weekend or other gamesSingle tickets for all games will go on sale August 9 at www.GoFrogs.com and the TCU ticket office currently located near Gate 6 in the Amon Carter Stadium, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. (CST), Mon – Fri. Season tickets are currently on sale, as is a mini-package ($150) for three games: Minnesota (Family Weekend), Oklahoma State (Homecoming), and Kansas State.

Main Office - (817) 257-FROG (3764/7967)E-Mail - [email protected]

Remember, anytime you are purchasing tickets for your family, your TCU student is able to enter all on-campus TCU sporting events, as well as Fine Arts and speaker events with his/her TCU ID card. ONLY if you want your student to sit with you, would you purchase him/her a ticket.

Parents of SophomoresPlease note that there is a special article for you about a new initiative, Sophomore Week at TCU. You have already read about the Seond-Year Pinning Ceremony which will be culmination of the week’s activities.

All Parents

The next communication to all parents and families will be the September e-magazine. Look for it. Until then, if I can be helpful, please feel free to contact me.

Finally, for the fourth consecutive year, TCU has been selected as one of the top universities honored as a “Great College to Work For.” When people are happy at work, they are friendlier, nicer, and more helpful. The beneficiaries of TCU’s positive work environment are your students and you! It’s a win-win for everyone! Read here to learn more: www.newsevents.tcu.edu/stories/university-honored-again-as-one-of-top-great-colleges-to-work-for-and-on-honor-roll

Go Frogs!

Kay Higgins, Ph.D.Associate Dean of Student DevelopmentDirector of Parent & Family Programs

Page 4: TCU Parent & Family Magazine, Vol 1/ Issue 5, July/August 2014

I am confident that this summer continues to be “exciting times” in your household! Preparing for college raises everything to a whole new level of energy and anticipation!

The June edition of The Parent Experience newsletter for the parents of the Class of 2018 and new transfer student families was the Pre-Orientation newsletter. If you did not receive it, you may view it online www.sds.tcu.edu/parents/emails/jun2014.html. (You may also access it at www.parents.tcu.edu). This issue includes practical information as well as program details that will interest you.

Some of the information below was covered in the June Orientation session, but some attendees may have missed it. If your family is attending in August, you will want to know all this information now.

Shipping BoxesStudents who want to ship boxes to campus may do so. The TCU Post Office began receiving shipments on July 1, 2014. Click here for shipping tips from the TCU Post Office: www.tcupostoffice.com/MTG_mailtips_01.asp. Because there is limited storage in the residence halls, the housing staff asks that the student schedule packages to arrive at his/her residence hall after he/she has moved into the building.

Students may reserve a post office box at Orientation or by calling 817.257.7840. The post office is the ONLY way that a student can receive mail through the US Postal Service.

Finally, if shipping boxes is not your thing, you may want to go the website for Bed, Bath, and Beyond, Target, and/or The Container Store. All three will allow you to purchase on-line and then pick up at the local store located less than five miles from TCU. Also, for your convenience in planning, Fort Worth has a Costco, Sam’s, Home Depot, and Lowe’s in the same direction as the three previously mentioned retailers.

Bringing a Computer to Campus?Desktop or laptop? PC or MAC? TCU will support either. Bring what you have to campus! (One exception, the Neely School of Business will only allow its students to use a PC. No other college has a policy.) Some students have printers, but they are not necessary since the TCU Library provides 200 free prints per semester. The Help Desk is always ready to assist students with technical difficulties.

Inquiring Minds Want to KnowKay Higgins, Ph.D., Associate Dean of Student Development, Director of Parent & Family Programs

The link below has more information about computing on campus than you would ever want to know – including what virus protector to use. Click the link and start reading! www.tr.tcu.edu/StudentComputing.htm. Housing AssignmentsRoom/roommate assignments have been sent to students in a rolling process, beginning the first of July. Once a student has been assigned, he/she will be notified. Regardless of how long your student may need to wait to hear, if your student is beginning his/her first year, he/she will receive a housing assignment. If a student needs to communicate with the housing office about the assignment or to ask questions, the best option is to email [email protected].

Banking InformationWhile it is possible to bank anywhere in the world, regardless of your physical location, Bank of America and Citibank have locations in walking distance to TCU. Frost, Chase, Compass, and Wells Fargo are less than 2 miles from campus. There are three ATMs on campus. Two, Bank of America and Citibank, are located in the Brown Lupton University Union (BLUU). The third, Wells Fargo, is in the University Recreation Center. All three require a $2.00 service charge if you are not a customer. The Financial Services Office will cash a check for a student up to $100.00.

TransportationShould my student bring a car to campus?Whether or not your student brings a car to campus is a personal family decision. If the car the student has been driving to and from high school will not make it across the country to Fort Worth, TX, it can stay home and a replacement is not necessary. While most of our students do bring a car, there is a rapidly-growing number of students who do not have a car.

If you are concerned about your student’s self-discipline first semester, you may want to contract with your son/daughter that with certain behaviors and accomplishments the car can be earned for spring semester or even next fall. Students who bring cars find the parking to be inconvenient and report to seldom use their cars. (The parking fee is $75/year.) If

your home is within 2 - 3 hours of campus, you may choose for your student to have a car for your own convenience.

Should my student bring a bicycle?If you son/daughter is an avid biker, by all means, he/she will want to have a bike. A bike is not necessary to get around campus or to and from class. (We have a shuttle for those who do not want to walk.) If you student is not sure about how much he/she would use a bike, Fort Worth has “bike rental” program, with stations all over the city, including on-campus at University and Cantey Dr. To rent for a semester to see how often the bike was used might be a good way to decide if your student wants to bring a bike to college.

How does my student get around the metroplex?For students to go to local retailers, restaurants, and movie houses, usually they ride with friends who are going also. There is a bus system in Fort Worth, but most destinations require that passengers change buses, and that option is not usually preferred.TCU also has two Zip cars on campus. You may learn more about that service at www.zipcar.com.

Getting around the metroplex is a treat and it is FREE! The TRE (train) station is about 4 miles from campus, in downtown Fort Worth. The TRE goes to D/FW airport and to the American Airlines Center in downtown Dallas. One can board DART (Dallas mass transit) to any part of Dallas, including Love Field from that location. The exciting part is that with a TCU ID and a TRE transportation card, which the student can acquire at the beginning of the semester, all that transporting is FREE!How does my student get to the airport?

Page 5: TCU Parent & Family Magazine, Vol 1/ Issue 5, July/August 2014

As previously addressed, the TRE is one option to the D/FW airport. If your student needs to go to Love Field, he/she would need to take the TRE to Dallas and then DART to the airport. Super Shuttle is a frequently used form of transportation. UBER is another alternative in the area. If you are interested in using a private car service, A number of families call Han’s at 817.992.3041. However, probably the number one way students get to the airport is “with a friend.”

How will I know all the cool things going on at TCU?There are numerous ways to know what is going on at TCU! One is to read your monthly communication that is emailed to you from the Parent and Family Programs Office. You will receive a magazine like the one you are reading in September, November, February, April, and July/August. In alternate months, I will write a column to update you on recent events and things you should know. If you have not already, if you have a smart phone you and your student will want to go to your “app store” and download the TCU app. In addition to live-streaming KTCU, checking the location of the shuttles on campus, and finding the available computers on campus, you and your student can start the day by reading TCU 360 – the breaking news on campus – as it happens!

More pre-start-of-classes information:Frogs First begins with the Chancellor’s Assembly on Thursday evening, August 21 at 8:00 pm. There will be programs and events throughout the next three days which will include the following:

Common Reading – August 22, 2014The book selected for this year’s Common Reading is Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood.

You will probably want to read it yourself. It would make for some poignant dinner conversations at your home this summer!

Your student has or will soon be receiving the book in the mail if he/she did not attend Orientation in June. Every member of the Class of 2018 will read and discuss the book as part of their induction into the TCU learning community. Faculty will lead the small groups as they discuss how the reading relates to the TCU Mission Statement and our place in the global community. You and your student can find much more about the book at www.commonreading.tcu.edu.

Need 2 Know – August 23, 2014Need 2 Know is an important educational hour for your student. All women and men new to TCU are required to attend one of the four sessions. Your student will receive more information about this program closer to the date of the event.

Activities & Organizations Fair – August 24, 2014Students will have an opportunity to attend the Activities & Organizations Fair to begin learning all the many involvement opportunities that are available on campus. They can sign up to receive information from numerous organizations, but we encourage students to commit to no more than three opportunities (work, clubs, sports, community service, etc.) besides their academic classes during the first semester.

Additional Resource InformationI would like to direct you to several websites that will answer many of the questions that may be on your mind right now:• Residence Life & Housing: www.rlh.tcu.edu

• Health Center: www.healthcenter.tcu.edu• Information Technology: www.tr.tcu.edu• Disability Services: www.acs.tcu.edu• Financial Aid: www.fam.tcu.edu

If you and your student are attending Orientation in AugustIf you and your student are attending Orientation in August, there are several things that may be helpful to you now.

• If your student is in one of the August Orientation sessions, I want to calm your nerves right now. There will be classes for your son or daughter! Not only are seats and sections saved for each Orientation session, but the add/drop process is very different than when our generation went to college. Unlike the old “tablets of stone” that we received as a semester schedule of classes, enrollment is now a very fluid process. Students begin adding and dropping classes within an hour of departing Orientation and continue to do so until the Friday of the first week of class (That date is August 29, 2014.)! A class that was closed last Wednesday may have three seats open today. Trust me on this one! I have been directly involved with Orientation since 1987! I know what history tells me!

• Your student may want to become familiar with the University catalog, which has all the academic information for the Core curriculum and specific majors. If he/she would like a printed copy, a downloadable “print version” is also available here: www.catalog.tcu.edu.

• Remember that students will move into their permanent housing when they check-in at the designated time assigned to your student by Housing and Residential Life (Frog Camp, Orientation, band, recruitment, etc. www.rlh.tcu.edu/movie-in-out.asp). For that reason, parents and families MUST stay in off-campus housing during Orientation.

Students should remember to complete the Informd computer program prior to arriving for Orientation.

If you cannot find the information you seek, please feel free to ask me directly by emailing [email protected]

I had a great time in June, meeting so many wonderful families, sons, and daughters! If you will be attending Orientation in August, I am equally excited to meet you and your new student!

Classes start one month from this week. Oh my!

Page 6: TCU Parent & Family Magazine, Vol 1/ Issue 5, July/August 2014
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The Best Year of their LivesDavid S Cozzens Ph.D., Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs/Dean of Campus Life

So your son or daughter is going to college. You have worked the past 17 years getting him/her this far. What can you do now? Here are some friendly suggestions based on what we know new students will experience in college, and how parents can be most helpful.

What is the college experience?While the college years are exciting, stimulating, and illuminating, they are also a time of considerable stress interspersed with confusion, uncertainty, and loneliness. It is very important that your adult-child learn to navigate successfully through these years and their feelings so that they attain the sense of competence that is the foundation of self-efficacy and confidence.

The change from the first 17 or 18 years at home with parents to living in a new environment with new rules and lots of different options, deadlines, and expectations is the definition of “sea change” and is therefore very stressful.

Even though they may act like they know who they are and where they are going, we know that most students are looking for identity (who I am), independence (how to “do” life), and intimacy (how to connect and work with others). These are the crucial developmental processes that are at the core of your child’s growth during the college years. Another significant growth edge is learning to live interdependently with others and to constantly consider how one’s decisions impacts others.

If students seem confused, it is because they are confused about life and all its options. If they seem moody, it is because this is a time of highs and lows. If they seem lonely, it is because they will often feel alone in their journey. If they seem angry or sullen, it is because they are scared—and it is sometimes harder to allow fear to show than anger.

There are at least three activities that students will try to balance during their college years: study, sleep, and socializing. It is their ability to strike a healthy balance among these three that will help them succeed.

Students need to take some risks as they continue to learn about themselves. Without some failure, some mistakes, they do not learn about their limits or test their values. It is sometimes difficult for you to allow your child to experience the “pain” of his or her errors, but it is the very practice of these feelings that strengthens their ability to manage life’s current and future complexities.

We know that learning to be 'resilient' is a crucial component of successful navigation of life; we need to continue to practice handling challenging and difficult situations while your students make choices of when and whom to ask for help. Too much help creates dependence. Too little help can result in isolation and a lack of crucial feedback .

How can parents be helpful?The most helpful parents are those who listen, directly and indirectly express support, acknowledge their student’s feelings, and allow them to generate options. You will need to allow students their space.

• If you have not already, start treating your son or daughter as an adult. It is important to respect your student as a separate, functioning, adult person (even though he or she sometimes may not act like one).

• Communicate from your end during the semester, but do not expect students to do the same from their end, in fact if you or he/she are communicating daily it may be an indication of too much interaction and the student not making new connections.

• Try to understand and empathize with what your student is going through—big changes, searching for identity, independence, interdependence, etc.

• Let students know that you are there for them, but let them “struggle” so that they learn that you are confident in them while they learn to be confident in themselves.

• Remind them of the resources at TCU that will be helpful to them. We know that help-seeking behavior is a crucial skill that successful students (people) use that comes in handy throughout life.

• Keep your sense of humor!

“Letting go” does not mean giving up the crucial relationship you have with your son/daughter, but transforming it into one that is more mutual with respect to his/her emerging adulthood. I wish you well in your continued adjustment as you support and challenge your student to grow toward adulthood. This is TCU's common cause as well.

Page 8: TCU Parent & Family Magazine, Vol 1/ Issue 5, July/August 2014

John Mark Day, M.A., M.S., Director of the First Year Experience, Student Development Services

Your student will be facing a lot of firsts in the next few months: first night in a residence hall, first college class, first TCU football game in the student section. The staff of the First Year Experience helps your student navigate those firsts in order to not just be successful on campus but to begin to make a difference at TCU and beyond.

The staff of the First Year Experience at TCU operates under a straightforward premise: Every student comes to TCU with high potential. Who they meet, what they do, and how they think determines what we become. Your student, and your family, are now part of the TCU community and so join thousands of other Horned Frogs in TCU’s vision to learn to change the world.

Each month the staff will be providing your student with programs, tools, and information useful to thrive in their first year at TCU. The themes for each month will be:

August/September:

Establish & maintain interpersonal relationships

January: Develop towards a career

October:Develop intellectual & academic competence

February: Develop multicultural awareness

November: Maintain health & wellness March: Develop civic responsibility

December:Consider faith & the spiritual dimensions of life

April: Explore identity development

Be on the lookout for programs and events throughout the year to help connect your students to each other and to campus, and feel free to reach out to [email protected] for more information. You may also follow Student Development Services on Twitter (@TCU_SDS) or Facebook (www.facebook.com/TCUSDS ) or like the TCU Parent & Family Programs on Facebook (www.facebook.com/TCUParentFamilyPrograms).

Your First-Year Horned Frog

Page 9: TCU Parent & Family Magazine, Vol 1/ Issue 5, July/August 2014

The transition to college can be tough. Connections, a program through the TCU Leadership Center, helps incoming students with that transition once their first semester starts, spring boarding off of their experiences during the summer with Orientation and Frog Camp.

Connections is a small-group centered leadership program open to 500 first-year students. It is an opportunity for incoming students to gain valuable insights into what it means to begin “thinking and acting like an ethical leader and responsible citizen in the global community.” Connections challenges students to wrestle with personal identity and self-awareness, investing in and helping shape a thriving campus community, and learning about the ways in which our personal and communal lives are connected to the larger piece of the community. In addition, students will make lasting friendships and will find their own place in the TCU community.

Each first-year student who registers is placed in a Connections group with 18-20 peers. Each group is facilitated by two upper class students who serve as mentors, as well as a faculty/staff mentor. Over the course of six weeks, we’ll focus on the following topics:

• Discovering and uncovering participants’ personal strengths• Discovering what it means to bring those strengths and leadership styles to the campus

community and in a team setting• Exploring the meaning, importance and responsibility of living in a community with others• Discussing principles of community-building• Making connections between the individual, the community, and the global society

The Connections program will meet every Wednesday from 3:30-5:00 pm from September 3-October 8.

Brien Twomey, a junior business major from Austin, who serves as the Director of Operations for Connections, says, “Connections helps incoming students with the crucial transition to college life at TCU and allows them to participate in a program in which they are the focus, and as a result, they are provided a valuable opportunity to begin meaningful relationships on campus.”

Students shouldn’t miss this FREE opportunity to gain significant leadership development, participate in important conversations, and connect with other students, campus leaders, and faculty/staff at TCU. Additionally, Connections represents, for many, the first step toward earning a leadership medallion upon graduation from TCU through the Leadership Scholars Program. The Leadership Scholars Program is an offering through the TCU Leadership Center and provides students the opportunity to learn about leadership in a unique manner through interactive and engaging seminars facilitated by TCU faculty and staff.

Parents, talk to your new Horned Frog about leadership and encourage him/her to register for Connections at Orientation during the Essentials Fair by going to the TCU Leadership Center booth. Only 50 spots are available during each Orientation session!

For more information, visit www.connections.tcu.edu or contact Dede Williams, Director of the TCU Leadership Center at [email protected].

con·nec·tions Dede Williams, MBA, Director of the TCU Leadership Center, Student Development Services

Page 10: TCU Parent & Family Magazine, Vol 1/ Issue 5, July/August 2014

TCU welcomes over 400 transfer students every fall and over 100 each January. Most of our transfer students come from local community colleges and four-year institutions and about 23% from out-of-state schools. Though we use the term transfer student because they have some previous college experience- that’s usually all they have in common. The TCU transfer student population can include everyone from a 19 year-old student who spent his/her first semester at another university, to a veteran of the armed services stepping on a college campus for the first time, and to a 53 year-old working parent of three returning to school to complete a bachelor’s degree started two decades earlier. The range of experiences and diverse perspectives adds such a wonderful richness to the TCU campus.

Supporting your TCU transfer student means different things to different families. For some it will be taking on more family responsibilities so that your student can take some extra study time. For some it might be encouraging your student to be on campus more in order to make connections with other students. In this article we will get you up-to-speed on the process of transitioning to TCU and ways to help your transfer be successful.

Communication with TCU is crucial for your student. TCU uses email as the primary form of communication. TCU students MUST check and read their TCU email daily. Yes, there will be things they are not interested in and yes, there will be days with lots of emails but in those emails will be from professors, calendars of activities, instructions and tips on how to be successful at TCU and more. They should not let emails pile up as unread. Transfers are also encouraged to “like” the Transfer Center on Facebook, www.facebook.com/TCUTransfers, where they can meet the Transfer Mentors, a group of student leaders whose mission is to help transfers have a smooth and successful transition to TCU.

You will also be interested to know that having a student at TCU means that you will receive communication, too. The Office of Parent and Family Programs sends monthly communications to parents and families of our students. In addition to the e-magazine that is sent in July-August, September, November, February, and April, a column written by the director is sent at the beginning of October, December, January, March, and May. If you are not sure that you have received the communication, you may always go to www.parents.tcu.edu and click on Publications to see the current and archived communications.

Advising and Enrollment. After being admitted and making the deposit to reserve a space at TCU, transfer students need to request that their transcripts from their previous institutions be sent to the Office of Admission at TCU. Their transcripts will be processed and equivalent courses will be recorded. Equivalency information for students who attended Texas community colleges and many state universities can be found here: www.admissions.tcu.edu/Transfer/Credit-OR-Course-Equivalency. After final transcripts have been requested, students can look forward to receiving academic advising and enrolling in courses. This process can be done when the student contacts his/her academic advisor or attends academic orientation. For students starting classes in August, June 1 is the first date they may contact an academic advisor. For students starting classes in January, that contact date is November 15. Students may contact their individual school or college to connect with their academic advisor. Some advisors will meet over the phone, others require a face-to-face meeting. Students who are entering TCU as pre-majors should contact the Center for Academic Services: www.acs.tcu.edu.

Orientation is another way to receive academic advising and register for classes, along with many other helpful sessions for students and family members. Transfer Orientation is one day and is designed specifically for transfer students. Transfers may also attend a two day session, though it is designed for students attending college for the first time and requires an overnight stay in a residence hall. There is no cost to students for Orientation. At Orientation, students learn how to be successful in the classroom at TCU. They get to know the campus, meet faculty and staff, and are led by student leaders who know exactly what new students at TCU need. Transfer Orientation includes lunch and a special panel discussion with the Transfer Mentors. Check out www.orientation.tcu.edu. Orientation is the best way to begin one’s college career at TCU. In addition to being advised and enrolled for class, there are networking opportunities with new and continuing students, as well as faculty and staff, all of whom will be great resources for your student.

Frog Camp at TCU is a nationally recognized program and over 75% of entering TCU students choose to attend. Frog Camp is the best way for students to connect with entering students, student leaders, faculty and staff in a casual environment and learn about life at TCU outside the classroom. There are a variety of camps and scholarships are available. www.frogcamp.tcu.edu.

Supporting Your TCU Transfer StudentKeri Cyr, M.Ed., Assistant Director of Transitions, Student Development Services

Page 11: TCU Parent & Family Magazine, Vol 1/ Issue 5, July/August 2014

Supporting Your TCU Transfer StudentKeri Cyr, M.Ed., Assistant Director of Transitions, Student Development Services

Frogs First is a weekend of programs to welcome students to campus. Transfer students can choose to participate in either a transfer-only schedule or the full experience. Students should watch their emails this summer for the link to sign up. Learn more at www.frogsfirst.tcu.edu. Updates will be posted all summer.

Transfer 101 is a crash course for TCU transfer students over a dinner during the first week of school. It’s not a replacement for Orientation or Frog Camp, but a program designed to help your student navigate the campus and connect him/her with campus resources quickly. Your student may also take this opportunity to connect with a Transfer Mentor and to receive one-on-one attention and answers to questions. Students should watch their TCU email for more information and registration information about this program. This year Transfer 101 is scheduled on August 27 at 5:30 p.m.. Encourage your student to regsiter by visiting www.sds.tcu.edu/transfers.asp.

Being on campus to go to class is important, but being on campus to be part of the TCU community is also vital to your student’s education. All students should get involved in groups, organizations, causes on campus that complement their studies and push them to grow and achieve more than just a letter grade in a class. Students should meet with faculty, apply for leadership positions, participate in undergraduate research, hang out for outdoor concerts, find study groups, and attend athletic events. These things are all part of what people expect as part of the TCU experience.

Encourage your student to look for more information at www.sds.tcu.edu and email [email protected] with any questions he/she may have. Welcome to the Horned Frog Family!

Transfer Mentors Adam Doerr and Paige Rodriguez (not pictured, Amanda Dorsey) and Assistant Director for Transitions in Student Development Services, Keri Cyr welcoming transfers during Transfer Orientation on June 24, 2014.

Page 12: TCU Parent & Family Magazine, Vol 1/ Issue 5, July/August 2014

Sophomore Week 2014 will be September 6-12. This week of programs will provide sophomores with academic resources, financial literacy skills, study abroad preparation, and an emphasis on well-being, in addition to some fun, social activities. The week will culminate with the Second Year Pinning, an annual event which recognizes sophomores’ transition into upper-division leaders on campus - an important step in the development of college students. A tentative schedule is below. Please encourage your sophomore to participate in these events.

Sophomore Week 2014

Page 13: TCU Parent & Family Magazine, Vol 1/ Issue 5, July/August 2014
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Texas Christian University2800 South University Drive Fort Worth, TX 76129

www.tcu.edu

Our Mission: To educate individuals to think and act as ethical leaders and

responsible citizens in the global community.