This. We also take photos of DL/SS with their phones. Sometimes, all they need is the respective numbers. Put it in the favorites album for easy access. There is no way I am sending passports with my kids, unless they request them. The hassle of losing one or having one stolen is such a headache. I did give my older son his passports after he graduated and started working, but not while he was in college. He never did a semester abroad so I kept them with me. That’s just how we do it fwiw.
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We keep the passports at home.
Yep. At home, with me. lol…(no one touches them unless needed). Just an anecdote: my husband had his passport stolen in Budapest once and it was a nightmare (Embassy was closed). Granted he was on a trip, but a nightmare regardless.
My kids paid for their own passports, and even if they hadn’t, at 18 I wouldn’t be comfortable dictating where they store them. I advise my kids but try not to make them do what I think is the correct way to do things, unless we are talking about laws or serious health concerns.
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Maybe this differs by state, but my kids have always used their learner permit to fly. It’s a state ID. (My college freshman still only has the permit. No license, no passport, and will be flying next week.)
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It most likely depends if the state learners permit is a DHS REAL ID. Our state is compliant but not all are until 2023, I believe.
Reading this recent discussion about documents to send with our college kids and also comments on the vaccination thread, it is so interesting learning how requirements and protocols differ across the states. 
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@burghdad Congrats on the move in!
@3SailAway That is great that your kids are on the trip together! Sounds like she is having a fun trip.
We got our first FaceTime from D21 last night once her trip was over. I know it sounds silly but I swear she already looked and seemed more grown up. 
She was so over the moon happy it put DH and I in a good mood all night. She is not one to usually tell us every detail of her life but she spent forever talking to us about every bit of her trip and described every person she met. She really liked everyone in her group and it sounds like a few of them will become good friends. Her roommate moves in in a few hours, can’t wait to see how that goes!
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My kids have never needed originals in order to get a job (NC). Both have been working steadily since they were 16.
My 26 y.o. daughter just stopped over last week to retrieve originals of her documents from our fire safe - she needs them to get her marriage license - then she said she may bring them back for safe-keeping 
If needed at college, they can always be overnighted. I doubt any employer would rescind a job offer because they had to wait a day or two for original documents.
D21 hasn’t left home yet- but just had trouble with her checking account- has to bring in 2 forms of identification.
@burghdad My heart is so full to read your move-in update!! There’s a bit of high school/college admission cycle closure that makes me so happy.
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That is happy news! So good to see them so upbeat and excited.
Last communication from my D was an early Tuesday morning text. She is normally one to text me a dozen times per day (even when she is just upstairs in her room) So I can only assume she’s out of power and/or not willing to climb a tree! I know she was a little worried about high/fast water from all the rain but I’ll have to believe that no news is good news…@3Sailaway, your update is most welcomed!
Tonight all the different groups (backpacking in Shenandoah NP, bicycling, canoeing and ocean paddle-boarding) will convene back on campus for a last jamboree together (I think they will camp right there, and hopefully get showers) before breaking up in the AM. What tales they will tell! My H has already started the trek to get her (plans to do a little sight-seeing in Yorktown while he’s at it). I don’t think many colleges did these trips this year, compared to pre-Covid times, so I’m grateful.
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I hope your D and @3SailAway’s are having an amazing time! I’m so glad they had this opportunity and can’t wait to read more updates. 
I do find it interesting that they did it before move-in. My D will thankfully have a pre-orientation week as well, but those kids move-in to the dorms early so parents only get one drop-off. Is it always that way at W&M or did they purposely hold the pre-O trip early in case there were covid outbreaks to deal with before classes begin?
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Well, they will have another bunch of pre-orientation groups next week, doing the same activities, plus a community-service group doing activities locally. Lots of options! But even those groups won’t move into dorms until after the pre-orientation. The orientation for all students after move-in lasts around three days, so a long process. My D decided that she wanted the six days home before move-in to decompress before the big event, even though it did mean a lot of back-and-forth. She was a little nervous about the canoe trip beforehand, and knowing she could come home afterward was reassuring. And, as @3SailAway said, I think she’ll return to campus feeling more confident, knowing she has already made some friends.
Oh, edited to add, I think the timing is how the school has typically done it in years past. All students participating in these trips had to prove full vaccination status before going this year.
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@inthegarden That sounds so great - I’m sure she is having the best time!
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Question for you guys, do you recall if your kids received several marketing brochures from NESCAC schools? What I am wondering is if their marketing is done more thoughtfully like by region, etc. I ask because I saved the marketing materials for both my girls and for their grad party I looked for all the Williams/Amherst brochures and found only 2 pieces and one of those could have been because they signed up on their website as directed by the first mailer.
Of course we might actually be able to thatch the roof with the 9700 mailers from UChicago 
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IIRC my D hardly got anything from NESCAC schools, pretty sure just from the ones we visited, and then not much. The only SLACs that sent a fair amount of material were Kenyon and Swarthmore. I’m sure there were others, but they had such clever mailings.
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Now on the way back to campus for the final night… she said she is having fun and the canoeing itself was nice.
Not thrilled though, that she just learned that students will now have to mask within their residence halls outside of their rooms through September, a new update. At least she got the chance to socialize and get to know others unmasked this week. All the kids on these trips had to be vaccinated.
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Well add this to my list, that I am thankful that D21 is going to school in our town. She called me crying saying her boyfriend of 11 months, who also is going to the same school and also on campus, broke up with her. She asked if I could pick up and go to the off campus Starbucks to talk. She cried on my shoulder, drank our coffee and when tears were dried she had me drop her off for the next Welcome Week activity. Thankful I could comfort her in person. Hoping the dust settles before classes start on Monday. The routine of classes, school work will be good for her.
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I’m worried about all the Hamilton groups, including D21’s group, who are out in the Adirondacks for 5 days - camping, canoeing, rock climbing, biking, hiking, etc. The rain this week has been very heavy, and there are river flood warnings for that area all the way through Saturday night. Certainly the rain will lead to bonding and stories, but I still worry about their safety and comfort. I wonder if some groups will come back early, before their scheduled time Sunday afternoon.
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Hugs to you…I had some of those worries. I do think the leaders have gone over emergency scenarios and have evacuation plans for different situations.
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