FYS Spring 2010 Parent Newsletter

Easter 2010

Dear Parents:

I write this letter with great anticipation, as the Great Vigil of Easter will begin in just a few hours; and with a keen awareness that our spring semester is drawing nigh. The maturation of the Class of 2013 has been indeed heartening. Our advisors in the First Year of Studies (FYS) have been extraordinarily impressed by the passion and intellectual curiosity of your daughters and sons.

Some have already made final decisions about an intended college and major. For others, the discernment process continues apace. My prayer is that all of them will remain open to those chance encounters, unexpected friendships, and moments of serendipity so central to a liberal education in the Catholic tradition. Such events “awaken” deep within a desire to explore life’s mysteries and to utilize the Arts, Humanities, Sciences, and Theological Disciplines as tools in so doing. Helping students both to plan for and launch this four-year adventure in research and learning is both our “calling” and joy as FYS faculty.

We are proud of all that this entering class has achieved and thankful for the love, support, and encouragement you have given them since their arrival in August. Your trust is making it possible for them to develop the confidence needed to thrive as rising sophomores.

Transitioning from the First Year

While the declaration of an intended college must take place before the end of the first year, the designation of a major is handled in a variety of ways by our several undergraduate academic units. Students entering the College of Arts and Letters may indicate a major if they are prepared so to do. However, a declaration is not formally required until the end of the sophomore year. The Mendoza College of Business has a standard curriculum for all second-year students. Final decisions about majors are not made until the end of the sophomore year. Those enrolling in the School of Architecture’s undergraduate program (B.Arch.) began taking Architecture courses during their first year. As sophomores, they will continue with the second year of its standard five-year curriculum. Students moving to either the College of Engineering or Science must declare a major during the spring semester of the first year. PIN Nights, at which students will receive information about registering for Fall 2010 courses, will be held during Easter Week.

 

Resources for Students and Families

In addition to the mentoring provided by FYS faculty advisors, several events (e.g., Majors’ Night, Spotlight Programs, the Dean’s Fireside Chat, and Professors Unplugged) that focus attention on integrated learning, intellectual exploration, colleges, and curricular options have been held earlier this term. Our Learning Resource Center continues to sponsor tutoring and collaborative learning sessions for students in need of additional academic support. Our Learning Strategies Specialist also remains available to students in need of special assistance.

I will be inviting first-year students to prepare a very brief “capstone meditation” in which they: reflect on what they have learned during the first year; assess progress toward their personal goals; and note some preliminary learning objectives for the upcoming academic year. By so doing, I hope they will begin to identify those ideals that constitute the “animating core” of their collegiate experience and reflect on how to fashion an approach to life that balances intellectual, spiritual, and other pursuits. It is vitally important, as the first-year experience comes to a close, that our students begin to develop both a lifelong learning program and strategic plan for personal development. This voluntary exercise in contemplative writing is the first step in so doing.

Closing Thought

Within the Catholic tradition, Holy Week is a period of prayer and preparation as the community of the faithful make a significant transition from Lent to the celebration of Easter – the heart and soul of the Christian tradition. It is also a time when members of our multi-faceted and diverse community of learners at Notre Dame are able to reflect on what it means to be stewards of knowledge, devotees of Love, and pilgrims heeding Wisdom’s call. Our vocations – whether we are parents, faculty, staff, or students – are the poetry through which those hopes we harbor are most eloquently expressed. May the days ahead find us rejuvenated and inspired as the intellectual and spiritual “seeds” planted long ago in the hearts of our first-year students flower into the dreams that will guide them on the next stage of their exciting journey.

Sincerely,

(The Rev.) Hugh R. Page, Jr., DMin, PhD

Dean, First Year of Studies

Associate Professor of Theology and Africana Studies

FYS Winter 2009 Parent Newsletter

Advent IV
23 December 2009

Dear Parents:
As I write, final examination period has ended, grades have been posted, our first substantial snow has fallen, and the campus is quiet and still. The end of a semester brings with it an assortment of feelings, not the least of which is fatigue. After fifteen weeks of intensive study and other activities, your daughters and sons have returned home much in need of rest and, in some instances, reassurance. Please encourage them to take advantage of this time away from school to reconnect with friends and loved ones and to take stock of the ways they have grown during their first term at Notre Dame.

Academic Performance

The academic progress made thus far by the class of 2013 is indeed extraordinary. The students with whom I have met seem well integrated into campus life and enthusiastic about their classes and other activities. The feedback I have received from our First Year of Studies (FYS) advisors, and faculty elsewhere in the University, indicates that your sons and daughters are working productively; prioritizing tasks and managing time effectively; and making good use of the many educational resources available to them. Some have already made decisions as to an intended college and major. Several have begun already to plan for their sophomore year. Many have enjoyed remarkable success in the classroom. In a few instances, they are even participating in research projects sponsored by faculty that will result in significant disciplinary advances and that will have an impact on our common life.

Assessment, Contemplation, and Planning 

Course grades are now available to students via the InsideND web portal. Those receiving a Grade Point Average (GPA) of 3.616 or better will be placed on the Dean’s List. Those with a GPA of less than 1.7 will be placed on academic probation for Spring 2010. It is important that students adopt an integrated strategy when assessing their academic performance in which course grades, written evaluations on assignments and projects, and progress toward first-year and personal learning objectives are evaluated. Such an approach helps students to determine where they stand in relation to institutional, disciplinary, and individual goals.

To this end, I recommend that first-year students utilize two strategies to chart their academic progress. The first is compilation of a learning portfolio consisting of the examinations, essays, and final projects submitted each term. The collecting, reviewing, and cataloging of undergraduate work is often a post-graduation afterthought. This is unfortunate because a portfolio of this kind can be consulted throughout a student’s four years at the University. The second is the writing of a brief meditation detailing one’s progress, lingering questions, and aspirations at the end of each term. This essay can be a valuable tool for vocational discernment and mentoring, one that can be shared with advisors and parents.

Next week, I will send an e-mail inviting first-year students to take a retrospective look at their first semester at Notre Dame for the purposes of self-evaluation. It will encourage them to write a one to two page meditation that assesses progress toward their own academic goals and the objectives established for the first year experience. These reflective essays should be sent electronically to their FYS advisors, who will read and use them in providing academic guidance during the spring semester. Please encourage your daughters and sons to take advantage of this important opportunity. You might also invite them to share some of their insights with you.

Down Time – Looking Toward Spring 2010

The first semester beyond high school is taxing for most students. The academic demands are substantial. The adjustment to new living arrangements is often difficult. Finding the right balance between engagement and disengagement is a challenge. Please encourage your sons and daughters to use this time away from Notre Dame to rest, recover, and refocus. Help them to survey the distance covered in their collegiate journey thus far. When they return in January, they will be preparing in earnest to enter either one of several colleges – e.g., Arts and Letters, Business, Engineering, or Science – or our School of Architecture. The decision as to which will be their final destination will be straightforward for some. For others, it will require considerable soul searching. FYS faculty will be available to assist them as they weigh various options.

In addition to our one-to-one mentoring, students will be able to attend Majors Night, an event organized by Student Government, at which information about undergraduate majors and minors will be made available. During the spring, we will also hold several special events aimed at reaching out to first-year students. The first will be our First Word lecture series, in which faculty and other invitees will offer advice on making the most of the initial year of college. The second will be our Professors Unplugged dinner, which will feature music, a meal, and informal conversation between faculty and students. The third will be a Dean’s Town Hall Meeting for first-year students. This will be a free-flowing question and answer session allowing students to raise issues of concern and to pose queries about any aspect of their educational experience at Notre Dame thus far. These initiatives will be under the direction of Mr. Sean Wernert, one of our first-year advisors. Additional information about these activities will be forthcoming.

Permission to Explore

Our metaphors for the learning process have a direct impact on the ways in which we experience its joys and opportunities. For those, like myself, who envision it as a journey, it involves exploration, movement, and maturation. At times, students that have just arrived at Notre Dame place the first of these – exploration – on the metaphorical “back burner” so that more pressing tasks can be accomplished. Often, these include completing university requirements or getting started on a major.  Clearly, attentiveness to such matters is pivotal. However, one must also leave room for random “aha” moments to occur, for serendipity to manifest, for the whisperings of the Spirit to be heard within. Please encourage the members of the Class of 2013 to see themselves as intellectual explorers whose peregrinations can open new vistas of opportunity, and be a source of hope for our global community.
May the approaching Holiday Season be filled with joy, celebration, and peace for you and those you hold dear. May the close of one year and the beginning of another find us open to the subtleties of Grace, receptive to the call of Wisdom, and warmed by the brightly burning fire of Love.

Sincerely,
(The Rev.) Hugh R. Page, Jr., DMin, PhD
Dean, First Year of Studies
Associate Professor of Theology and Africana Studies

FYS Fall 2009 Parent Newsletter

21 October 2009

Feast of St. Hilarion

Dear Parents:

In an effort to be better stewards of our natural resources, we are transforming our parent newsletter into an electronic weblog for parents. I will post entries here now and on two additional occasions: at the end of the fall semester and during the 2010 Spring Break. My hope is that these communiqués will provide answers to some of the more important queries you might have concerning the academic progress of your daughters and sons, as well as about the experiences they are having as their initial year at Notre Dame unfolds. The general purpose of these periodic postings is to support the families of our first-year students as they nurture the entering class of 2009. Please feel free to contact me via e-mail (hpage@nd.edu) if there are questions you wish to raise or items to which you would like me to respond.

As this first blog entry is posted, it is a sunny and mild autumn afternoon. The campus is quiet as we reach the midpoint of our Fall Break. Many students have returned home to be with the families and to visit friends. This is an ideal time for rest, reflection, and planning for the days ahead. Below, I offer some thoughts on several topics that focus on these and related issues.

Adjusting to the Rhythms of the First Year

Universities are rather like living organisms that have their own unique rhythms. Students inevitably adjust to them as their first year progresses. The daily, weekly, and semester schedules tend to be more flexible than those found in the typical secondary school. However, the intellectual demands of higher education are much more extensive due to several factors. Not the least of these are the course load, quantity of reading, and time required to prepare adequately for each lecture period.

Students at Notre Dame typically take five classes per semester. Each class will have a syllabus with reading from various required and/or highly recommended texts. Some classes have regular written homework assignments or problem sets that must be completed. Others will have out-of-class events such as films or lectures that must be attended. Overall, professors expect that students will devote a minimum of three hours of preparation for each hour spent in class.

Some students handle this demanding schedule well from the outset of the term. Others adjust more slowly. Many require help in mastering the skills needed to become astute time managers. Please encourage your sons and daughters to be good stewards of time. If they need help in setting priorities or the management of their calendars, please recommend that they talk with their advisors about getting assistance with these tasks immediately after Fall Break.

Balancing Academic and Other Pursuits

Our campus is a veritable beehive of activity. There is virtually always something happening. Residence hall life, campus-wide initiatives, athletic competitions, and other events vie for the attention of students. Finding the proper balance between such endeavors and coursework can be difficult for some. The mid-point of the first semester is an ideal time for first-year students to take stock of where they stand academically and to see if that ideal balance has been reached. It might be good to have a conversation with your sons and daughters about the importance of finding the combination of activities best suited for them – i.e., one that promotes intellectual maturity, spiritual growth, and optimal wellness.

Finding Down Time

The first eight weeks of the fall semester are demanding. Many first-year students have returned home having recently completed their mid-semester examinations as well. In all likelihood, they are quite fatigued and probably a bit anxious about their grades. Encourage your daughters and sons to see that their time away from Notre Dame amounts to an intellectual Sabbath – i.e., a time for rest, recovery, and contemplation that should be fully utilized.

Mid-Semester Grades

Instructors in first-year courses are asked to provide mid-semester grades for first-year students. These grades will not become a permanent part of their academic record. Instead, such marks serve as a measure of academic progress to date in a given class. Whether higher than expected, lower than desired, or at the level anticipated, mid-term grades are best used as tools for the design of future learning strategies. Grades are mailed to students during Fall Break and are also available online via the InsideND web portal.

A marginal or failing grade in any class should be treated very seriously. In more than a few first-year classes, students will begin to encounter material not covered in some high school courses after Fall Break. The pace at which new concepts are introduced will quicken and the level of difficulty in most courses will increase. Fall Break, and the period immediately following it, are very good times to make adjustments in study techniques. Academic advisors in FYS stand ready to help students secure the assistance needed to succeed in the classroom.

Students encountering significant difficulties should plan to visit our Learning Resource Center (LRC) as soon as possible. The LRC is located on the same floor as FYS administrative offices. It provides access to tutoring and collaborative learning groups, both of which have proven to be of great benefit to first-year students. It also houses our Learning Strategies Program. Please feel free to access the information about both initiatives on the FYS website. Moreover, please support us in encouraging your daughters and sons to do honest assessments of their academic performance thus far and to take those steps necessary to reach their full academic potential.

Each of us plays a vital role in the support system that sustains first-year students and enables them to realize their dreams. Open conversation at the family level about matters academic is one of the factors that can contribute to positive mid-semester adjustments that yield very successful end-of-term outcomes. Please set aside a few moments to talk with your sons and daughters about their academic progress to date.

Mature Decision Making

For more than a few students, their first year of university life represents the longest period of time they have spent as fully independent young adults living on their own and away from family and friends. Independence carries with it the responsibility for making sound judgments about major issues. Two of the dangers confronting youth in our society are alcohol and drug abuse. Please assist us in reinforcing the dangers implicit in such behavior and the importance of adopting a lifestyle that is healthy and free of any activities that can compromise their well-being.

Moreover, if there are special concerns that you have about homesickness, adjustment issues, or other matters that are having an impact on your son or daughter, please encourage him/her to discuss them with his/her advisor as soon as possible.

Withdrawing from Courses

For first-year students, schedule adjustments are not unusual. Some are made at the very beginning of the semester. Others, that usually involve the dropping of a class, are often made around the middle of each semester. The reasons for course withdrawal vary. They may include changes in academic goals, sub-par performance on examinations, or disappointing mid-term grades.

The dropping of a class is a matter not to be taken lightly. Anyone considering this option should consult her/his FYS advisor to talk about the implications of such action. Difficulties encountered in a class may be an indication that additional help is needed to promote more effective learning or to enhance performance on examinations and other assignments. Decisions about schedule changes should be prudent and measured. Please encourage your sons and daughters to have frank conversations with their advisors before making a final decision about withdrawing from a course. Please remind them, as well, that the deadline for so doing is Friday, 30 October 2009.

Spring 2009 Registration

FYS advisors understand that the first year is a time of tremendous growth for students, one characterized by an evolving sense of vocation and an increasing awareness of the many learning opportunities available at Notre Dame. Registration for Spring 2009 classes will begin in the latter part of November. Students will have a greater share of responsibility in this process than was the case in the building of their current schedules.

After Fall Break, FYS advisors will hold informational sessions with students to review registration instructions. Students will receive e-mail notification about these meetings from their advisors in the coming weeks. Our goal is to familiarize them with the process and to enable them to make informed choices about classes. We hope to have the scheduling process completed before the final examination period begins. We will also work with students to make any necessary schedule changes when they return in January. Every effort will be made to assist them in charting an academic course that leads to their desired goals. We will help them to select the courses necessary to meet first-year requirements and give them a well-rounded educational experience. However, please help them to understand that there may be instances when they will not be able to register for the exact section or time slot they prefer.

Exploration, Dreaming, and Discernment

You will recall that I stressed, in my Orientation remarks, that students should make a conscious effort to cultivate the disciplines of the mind and heart that facilitate lifelong learning and enable one to discern the subtle vocational urgings of the Divine. Periodic disengagement, silence, contemplation, and serendipity play an important part in this process. Please encourage your sons and daughters find a few moments away from life’s distractions so that they can “center” themselves and consider prayerfully their spring course options.

Furthermore, please invite them to share with you some of their anxieties, hopes, and dreams in the coming weeks. Let them know that you are there to support them in the decision making process. We will do likewise. Together, we can give them the confidence needed to venture forth on the next stage of their journey.

Bringing the Semester to a Close

Each semester of an academic year represents a distinct chapter in a student’s life. The integrity of each term must, therefore, be kept intact. The class sessions, contact hours, and examination periods are carefully planned so as to allow students sufficient opportunity to acquire and synthesize new knowledge.

It is for this reason that we do not honor requests from first-year students to schedule examinations early because of travel plans. We want to ensure that they have every opportunity to benefit from a learning experience that is challenging and rigorous. We also want to allow them the chance for intellectual engagement that is broad, deep, and holistic. This requires the full sweep of a semester.

The last day of final examinations this semester is Friday, 18 December 2009. Please help us to make sure that students have sufficient time to complete their semester’s work well by making travel plans accordingly.

Closing Thoughts

On behalf of the FYS faculty and staff, please accept my thanks for entrusting your sons and daughters to our care. It is a privilege to serve as their mentors. Education is – in every respect – a grace-infused endeavor. It engages the mind, touches the heart, and leaves an indelible imprint on the soul. Those who teach and those who learn are transformed and renewed by it.

Parents, families, staff, and faculty members and are part of an educational ensemble that supports first-year students. May we gain inspiration from the good example of St. Hilarion – hermit, pilgrim, and worker of miracles – and other devotees of Wisdom, as we seek to help our current class of first-year students become the next generation of visionaries, poets, and servant-leaders.

Sincerely,

(The Rev.) Hugh R. Page, Jr., DMin, PhD

Dean, First Year of Studies

Associate Professor of Theology and Africana Studies