Page 52 - Considering College

Family

Family and home ecology have a significant impact on student success in primary and secondary

schools as well as in universities. In many of the communities I visited there was a strong sense of
the school as an extension of the family. Such a perspective is not always common, but when
present, it is powerful. Schools that respect family life, whether it is for the graduating high school

senior who intends to begin University study right after high school graduation, or the middle-
aged parent, with his or her own family, who intend to study on-campus or online while working

and nurturing family life is important.

Successful universities will respond to the needs of families and students in a way that is
respectful to the important role families play in the educational process, at every level, all the time,

without question.

When considering college:

-Pay attention to the cost of study, academic reputation, and the quality of the faculty, student

clubs and organizations, scholarships, and other markers of achievement. However if you don’t
believe you will become part of something larger than yourself, Seek a place to study that
encourages belonging, even if only for a season. New Home, Texas

-If family life and the support of a family structure is important to you try to understand whether

or not the institution values the importance of family – whether or not families are first, whether
a student is 18 or 38 years old. Abernathy, Texas