Parent/Professor Conference Day: A Trip Back To High School?

By Adam Fenwick
Staff Writer

We are not in high school anymore, at least that is what I thought until recently here at UNCP. On Oct. 6 the SGA voted to approve board of trustees member Breedan Blackwell’s idea for a parent/professor conference day in the upcoming school year. The reaction around campus however has been less then positive to this decision. Most students are appalled that the SGA would approve such an idea when the majority of the campus is so strongly against such an idea. We as students come to college to learn to be adults. We set our own schedule, make our own money and learn how to handle stressful situations on our own.

Myself, as well as many other students, believe this ruling is pure stupidity. Last time I checked, I had graduated high school. My parents no longer should have to watch over me and punish me if my grades are not up to par. I am an adult, not a teenager who needs looking after. Even the professors around campus are upset with the SGA ruling. Many professors around campus believe that the idea of parent/professor conferences is a very bad idea. All this however is beside the point. Legally the professors are not allowed to discuss our grades with our parents. For the life of me I do not understand how Mr. Blackwell plans to get around this law.

As an adult however I do see the plus side to such a ruling. For some parents who are helping pay for their children’s education this would be an excellent idea. It would give them the ability to follow the progress of their child so they would know just how good or bad they are doing. For some parents this would be an excellent idea. In several ways this proposal would also be helpful to the university. Such a proposal would likely get the attention of several parents, and likely would cause many families to send there children here so they could keep a closer eye on them.

The fact remains however that such a ruling would simply be against the law. Federal law prohibits professors from disclosing any information about a student to anyone, even the student’s parents. I agree with this law and the reasoning behind it. We are no longer in high school and our parents do not need to watch over us like we are babies. I am not denying the fact that for some this proposal could be in fact a good idea. However for most students this idea is outlandish. I for one hope that when this proposal reaches the Faculty Senate it is shot down. I am not in high school anymore, and I certainly do not want to feel like it.