The Parents Association provides a vehicle through which the Colleges and parents work together. We all share one thing in common: a vital interest in the welfare and education of your sons and daughters. Every parent is considered an important member of the Parents Association and we welcome hearing from you. Please feel free to contact the Parents Office by phone (315) 781-3755 or e-mail.
Representing Hobart and William Smith parents, the Parents Executive Committee is comprised of the officers of the Parents Association, which include the president and chairpersons of the committees: Parents Fund, Admissions, Events and Career Services. All positions may be held by an individual or shared by a couple. The Parents Association meets on campus twice during the academic year, once at Parents and Family Weekend in the fall and once in the spring.
Parents who volunteer to assist the Office of Admissions provide a valuable resource for prospective students and parents to gain useful information about the HWS experience. Parents may wish to host or attend admissions receptions or information sessions held in various locations throughout the year. Current parents have also found it enjoyable to participate in admissions phonathons, encouraging prospective students to attend the Colleges. Want to learn more? Contact the Parents Office by phone (315-781-3755) or e-mail.
We are extremely proud of our Parents Fund. When parents make a gift to the Colleges above and beyond tuition, it's a wonderful endorsement of their belief in the education their sons and daughters are experiencing at Hobart and William Smith Colleges. We are also fortunate that many parents whose children graduated ten, twenty or thirty years ago are still supporting education at Hobart and William Smith. If you would like to join our dedicated core of Parent Fund volunteers who will be working to achieve our 2007-2008 goal of $450,000 with 48% participation, please contact Kerry Cassell at the Parents Office by phone (315-781-3755) or e-mail.
Parents often join alumni, alumnae and others to share their experience and knowledge of career options with students at events on and off campus. In addition, the Colleges' Career Services maintains the Career Network, a database system of volunteers through which parents, alumni, and alumnae offer to provide advice and information regarding their career paths to HWS students, alumni and alumnae. Contact Brandi Ferrara, associate director at (315) 781-3514 or via e-mail if you are interested in becoming a volunteer.
Would you like to volunteer over Orientation weekend or Parents and Family Weekend and share all that you know about the Colleges with new parents? Then we hope you'll join our events committee. This committee offers valuable feedback, ensures that parents are kept abreast of the important issues affecting the Colleges, and is comprised of some of our best ambassadors. If you're interested in participating on this committee, please contact the Parents Office by phone (315-781-3755) or e-mail.
One of the truly wonderful things about Hobart and William Smith parents is their willingness to become involved in the Colleges and to help out in any way they can. During the year, parents often host HWS programs in their area. Parents also play active roles in career services, admissions, communications, parent programs, and in the Parents Fund.
Hobart and William Smith parents develop close and lasting relationships with faculty members, administrators, fellow parents and friends of their sons and daughters. In a very real sense, we are like an extended family. This is not accidental, and the Parents Association, believed to be the first of its kind, plays an important role.