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Parents’ Weekend struggles to meet students’ expectations

College and home lives collided this weekend for many students.
Parents who thought they’d never sit on a college campus again and eat cafeteria food were in for a surprise as Parents’ Weekend commenced.
“It was especially nice for our parents to see how we live now that we’ve been here for awhile,” said freshman interactive media major Kiley Little.

Parents’ Weekend kicked off last Friday, giving students a chance to show their families Bradley life. Siblings, parents, grandparents and friends were all invited to attend the three-day weekend festivities.
One popular event of the weekend was Bags Night on Friday in the Markin Family Student Recreation Center.
Freshman political science major Jake Adcock was one of the students who joined his parents for a game of bags.
“I thought it was a great experience,” he said. “It was great being able to see my parents and it was a lot of fun catching up over bags, even though we didn’t win.”
In addition to Bags Night, there were a variety of events that students and parents could attend together. Some of those included magician Justin Kredible, Parents’ Weekend Brunch as well as multiple sporting events and student musical performances.
Freshman advertising major Kathryn Lyne said she felt there were not enough events offered.
“My parents have attended both Parents’ Weekends this year,” she said. “This weekend was a bit more disappointing to say the least. We didn’t really do many Bradley-related activities because I felt like they weren’t offered this time around.”
Director of Student Activities Michelle Whited said the attendance for the spring Parents’ Weekend is usually less compared to the average 2,000 parents who come in fall.
“Spring Parents’ Weekend typically has a lower attendance than fall,” she said. “This is due to a number of reasons, including how holidays fall, what parents and siblings have going on at home.”
Even though there was a low number of families who attended, Whited said the event still went well.
“We had approximately 250 families registered which is on par for most spring weekends. It is important to note that there are many more parents and families that attend who do not register, so our numbers aren’t exact.”
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