On July 25^th, hundreds of families came to Dartmouth's campus to be reunited with their children or siblings and enjoy all of what Dartmouth's big green campus has to offer. Much of the same as last year was the general feeling as families participated in events similar to the events scheduled during First Year Family Weekend in April 2007. My mother and I skipped most of the events and made our own fun on campus. After the weekend, I wondered if anyone else felt that Sophomore Parents' Weekend needed an overhaul. Unsurprisingly, the answer I received was "yes!" Many of the people I spoke with did not pay much attention to Sophomore Parents' Weekend. This was due to the fact that their families did not attend.

"My parents are too busy to attend Sophomore Parents' Weekend," says Maya Nathan '10 from Brooklyn, NY. But her parents have visited Dartmouth in the past. "I told them that the campus would be crowded, and that they'd have to pay money to attend. This is a rip off when they can come up to Dartmouth anytime and not have to pay the school."

Aspen Wilson '11 writes, "I am not a sophomore, but my parents have never visited Dartmouth. This includes the First Year Family Weekend back in May. I am from California, so it is too far and too expensive." Shelley Williams '10 agrees with Aspen. "My parents can't afford to attend the weekend. It's too expensive to get plane tickets." However, reasons other than cost also prevailed. "My parents are not attending simply because it is inconvenient for them to travel across the country from Seattle," says Justin Kim '10. "If my home were closer to Dartmouth, I'm sure that they would happily come to family weekend."

In regard to the similarities of the two big weekends, Samantha Parsons '10, one of the coordinators for Sophomore Parents' Weekend, says, "We started with the same outlined scheduled as last year, including routine events like the welcome events with deans and President Wright, tours of Rauner Library and the Bell Tower, the class-sponsored BBQ, Career Services events... Then we filled in the holes with events that we thought our class/their parents might be interested in; for example, relevant faculty speakers, a talent showcase for student performances, ice cream socials, a smore-making campfire, fun stuff."

Kim believes that his family would have attended Sophomore Parents' Weekend if he had wanted them to visit. "I feel, however, that it would be too much of hassle to fly here for just a few days, and I will most likely be busy during the event." The truth is that our midterm and papers did not take a vacation just because our parents did.

Could Dartmouth do more to increase parental participation in Sophomore Parents' Weekend and other family events? "I'm not sure how extensively Dartmouth advertises family weekend, but maybe promoting the function as an important part of the sophomore experience would help increase attendance," says Kim. "My parents did not mention family weekend to me, so I'm not sure if they know about it; perhaps I was supposed to tell them?" Maya is also unsure about how to increase participation. "I don't think much of functions like Sophomore Parents' Weekend. I would personally never attend one as a parent."

Most students' families attend to event to see their children, siblings, or relatives that they have not seen in months. Still, it is wise to think twice before making arrangements to come to Sophomore Parents' Weekend. Parents might not want to wonder, "Didn't we do this last year? And for a cheaper price?"