<p>@Oliver17 - I hope things improve for your daughter. It’s not easy being a freshman and being far away from home.</p>
<p>Sometimes homesickness hits at the most unusual times and to Juniors and Seniors as well. My daughter is very independent and loves Tulane and NOLA. Her boyfriend from back home (of almost 5 years) goes to Tulane and yet last year I had to pick her up in Providence at Midnight because she had to connect with and us and she booked a flight in less than 4 hours. We walk a fine tightrope of when to “tough love” and when to be a softee. Good luck Oliver - I hope it works out for the best.</p>
<p>Oliver, Sorry to hear about the rough start. Whatever the issues are, I’m hoping things quickly turn around for her.</p>
<p>I would like to chime in a little bit. We are Christian family and therefore my Son has joined the Christian Fellowship at Tulane and made friends at a local church. So, perhaps her daughter (Oliver17) would like to join a religious group also like jewish, catholic, Christian ministry, etc and would start making friends to expand the horizon and not entertain the boredom and homesickness. Also, I am hoping things will get better for her daughter.</p>
<p>I can’t thank everyone enough for all the support both emotionally and with practical solutions. I am taking it to heart and will pass it on. I think it is just very bad homesickness coupled with getting run down and not feeling great. I hope I will have good news to report soon. I know it will be a process and I am up for the challenge. ( I think)</p>
<p>Oliver - I can tell you from experience that it will pass. My D was the same way her freshman year - now she is a senior and actually told us that she is sad that she has only 1 more year! Hang in there - she will come around!</p>
<p>I just called my D for the first time since we left her there - everything else has been through texting. She was in the dining hall at 3:30 in the afternoon enjoying her daily icee. She said she LOVES it there at which point I had to remind her that I’m the one who filled out the application and submitted it for her (she did write the required essay but not the optional) because she wasn’t interested in Tulane. She thanked me. She was at Outreach Tulane today. She said classes aren’t too bad but she’s a little unsure about the combined calc 1 and 2 class. She seems to be getting along great with her roommate. She’s just so happy there. This was all of a 3 minute conversation.</p>
<p>One year ago today we sent her off to Spain, so being able to pick up the phone and call her in NOLA was nice…</p>
<p>That is great, cyclone. Just remind her that there are a lot of resources available for extra help with that calc class. I guess in a short conversation like that she couldn’t tell you, but did she decide on what activities to explore based on what she saw at the Activities Expo on Thursday?</p>
<p>How about the rest of you, any feedback on what caught their interest? My D said it was a big success and they had a ton of interest in the Tulane Lit Society. Someone even asked if they could publish a book they wrote! (No, but if the author could excerpt a short story from it like Faulkner, Hemingway and any number of famous writers have done in the past, the Lit publication could look at it). It was funny, because then she launched into a detailed lecture on North American publishing rights, which she learned a lot about both from the Lit Society stint she is doing plus it came up in researching her Honors Thesis topic. Anyway, I found that both amusing and ambitious that someone has a novel ready to go as an incoming freshman.</p>
<p>I know I said I wasn’t going to post until things were better but I have to pass on info. in case anyone else out there is going thru a similar situation. I filled out the form to nominate my d for success coaching. The online form took 5 minutes and hit on every subject ( academic support, social support, time management and even career support) You check off all the areas that apply. FYI, you need your student’s ID number and email address. They will contact the student within 48 hours to set up an apt. My d was fine with me doing it. I also contacted support services ( Thank you KreativeKat and FC) and am waiting to hear back from them. If nothing else, I feel as if I am doing all I can to support her. No matter what happens, I am so thankful for CC and all that Tulane has to offer! It is such a special place. Also, I mean it from the bottom of my heart, I am so happy for all of you whose students are happy and hope it continues!</p>
<p>Wonderful, oliver. We will all keep you and your D in our thoughts, I am sure.</p>
<p>I have to say that in the few years that I have been on here, this is the best group yet. It really demonstrates the best of what these online communities can be.</p>
<p>Oliver that is great. You’ve done everything you can do, and I’m confident she’s going to be ok. We’re all pulling for her (and you) so please let us know how she’s doing. I’m sorry I didn’t get to meet you at the Rum House that night. I had plans to meet my son’s roommate and his mom. Maybe over parents’ weekend!</p>
<p>FC, I’ve also been really impressed with the tone here. I can’t say the same for the Tulane Parents FB page unfortunately. Wow, some people there can be pretty nasty. I’ve actually stopped participating.</p>
<p>I’m scheduled to Skype with my son tonight at 10 (11 EST… which is pretty late for me but ok). I’ve confirmed this 3 times with him because I am still worried that he’ll ‘forget’ or just not be there. I’m hoping I’ll feel better after talking to him because at this point I have no idea how he’s really doing…</p>
<p>He has his Success Coach appt this week and I hope he goes. I think they are pretty good about nudging the kids, because they know many of them have THAT problem (“I forgot”).</p>
<p>My son’s response to “how do you like it so far?” was “I’m surrounded by incredibly smart, talented people. It gives me the incentive to make a name for myself. College is an eye opener. I’m in a great college AND in New Orleans.” And then he says he borrowed laundry soap from his roommate!! Kids!!!</p>
<p>mavitale - As I think I have mentioned, I rarely go on Facebook and virtually never post there. Maybe it is a “guys don’t multitask well” kind of thing, but I like the focus of this site. Even putting aside any tone issues (which I haven’t noticed since I don’t really read the postings there), the Facebook site seems kind of all over the map. Which I am not saying is a bad thing necessarily, it is probably good in theory that there is a place for that. Just not my thing.</p>
<p>I think the significant majority of the time when parents don’t hear much the first week, it means the kids are doing well. Obviously some kids hide issues when they are having them, but my observation has been that is much less common than the reverse. Although the converse does not hold, either. Lots of kids communicate frequently when they are very happy, although that is much more common with the young women. Is that sexist??</p>
<p>AZmustang - Glad he is so happy with everything so far. Not sure I understand about “borrowing” laundry soap though, as far as being a thing. It seems so…normal. LOL.</p>
<p>You’re right. The switch in context from the deep thought about his surroundings to the perfectly normal borrowing of laundry soap was what hit me. Kids are amazing - continually!!</p>
<p>So, here is my report. S is very happy, has met lots of people and likes the classes so far. They even watched the movie Shrek in his English class (I’m not sure exactly why, something about fairy tales??). The room mate is fine, nice, but quiet. I called him yesterday at 11:30 am NOLA time, he was still asleep after staying out to 3am checking out all of the frats.
But, of course, all can not be right in the world. On night 3, he and his floor mates went to the infamous “Boot” where, he had been assured that underage drinking is no big deal. Well, guess what?? it is! While sitting at a table (his beer on the table in front of him) outside, along with dozens of others, he was approached by an undercover police officer, who presented him with a citation for “underage possession of alcohol in public.” The officer told him that it will require a $100 fine and a court appearance! I’m not even mad at him, just concerned and annoyed. We have already spoken to Fredrick King, the lawyer that the Tulane kids are told to call if they get into trouble. Oy! day three! Do you believe it?! So, warn your kids to be careful and yes, you can get into trouble for underage drinking, even at the Boot!</p>
<p>Jozuko, that stinks! Just so everyone knows, you can drink alcohol in LA if you are under 21 but only in private residences if you don’t have a parent with you. If you were with him at the Boot, he could have had the drink without getting in trouble. Of course, none of that is to say you can’t get arrested for other things if you’ve been drinking, including dui if you have .02 or higher bac when you are under 21.</p>
<p>Jozuko…sorry to hear that but I’ve already gotten into trouble on FB with this topic so I’ll keep my trap shut. 
Hope you can get it worked out.</p>
<p>On another topic, I was disappointed to find out that the RAs in Paterson arranged a dorm event at the Fly yesterday instead of participating in Outreach Tulane. Why would they do that??</p>
<p>Jozuko - That does rather stink, as cyclone says. I guess it could be a lot worse though. Not to be dismissive of the $100, but the court appearance is probably the worst part. What a pain in the ass. Just out of curiosity, what did King have to say, in general terms? Anything useful?</p>
<p>The $100 does not include Mr King’s fee. The whole thing will probably cost $400</p>
<p>OK, that is a much bigger ouch. I guess I thought this was more like a speeding ticket in that you just show up and pay it and move on. Never really had to deal with anything like this, though. What does King contribute? Might be useful info for all of us, although of course we all hope it remains a moot point.</p>