August, 1999

Dear Parent(s):

Every semester, those of us who have the privilege of working with college students begin the exciting prospect of meeting and talking with our new students, their parents and other family members. Along with other Student Life staff members, I welcome you to the Luther family! I will meet many of you during the time your daughter or son is at Luther, and will enjoy hearing from you about your concerns as well as your hopes for your student.

The Luther College Parents' Council has surveyed Luther parents twice during the past ten years; the results reflect that parents believe one of Luther's greatest strengths is its caring atmosphere and the personal attention which students receive as an integral part of their time in college. Luther truly is a community of people who are committed to caring and who are interested not only in how students learn in an academic sense, but also how they grow personally, socially, and morally through the learning they do out of the classroom. The Student Life program pays special attention to helping students develop this sense of shared community, and to encourage and assist students in their learning about being responsible and caring members of society.

One aspect that defines us as a caring college community is that we do not deny the serious challenges for our young people today. Luther students will not be immune to larger societal problems such as the use and abuse of alcohol and drugs, violent behavior, including sexual assault, and other crisis situations. At Luther, as at most other colleges, first year students are most at risk for any problems involving peer pressure and trying out new behavior. For that reason, I would encourage you to talk to your son or daughter about challenges in young adulthood. You can be especially effective in discussing with him or her the implications of alcohol use and the negative impact it can have on their lives. I have enclosed a brochure that might be helpful to you as an opening to conversation. Our staff works hard to discourage the abuse and illegal use of alcohol through many means, including educational programs, the efforts of our Chemical Health & Wellness Educators, Sally Mallam and Jason Berg, and the encouragement of alcohol-free social and recreational programs. During the past four years, the college community has discussed and approved new policies relating to off-campus student-sponsored events with alcohol, the sanctions for alcohol use in the residence halls and on campus, improvements within the social organization system, and stricter sanctions for students who illegally use alcohol or drugs while on college-sponsored activities off campus.

As you probably realize, most of our students are not of legal age, and therefore these students are not allowed to consume or have alcoholic beverages in their rooms or on campus. Further, all students are subject to disciplinary action for alcohol-related problems such as disruptive behavior. Our policy utilizes preventative and educational efforts, in addition to other interventions for repeated violations. Our response to students with problems is to provide support through counseling and/or treatment, as well as referral to alcohol education programs, fines and/or community service. In most cases, parents can expect to be notified if their son or daughter has a second or third alcohol-related violation, so they can join the college in evaluating the situation.

We will continue special efforts to educate our students about other societal issues as well, especially in their first months as college students. As with alcohol education, educational programming regarding sexual assault, gender-related topics, multicultural sensitivity, and other such issues will be the best tool for student learning. Luther College, with the leadership of the Student Life staff, has developed an active program of education, counseling, and disciplinary processes to assist students in learning about and acting to improve their relationships and prevent all forms of sexual abuse and harassment. We have also re-written our policies and procedures regarding sexual abuse; I would encourage you to review that section, as well as the alcohol policy section, of your son or daughter's Student Handbook. We will, of course, utilize disciplinary action when necessary, to discourage any kind of abusive behavior. We want you, as parents, to know about our efforts in these important areas.

Finally, a word about our policy with regard to contacting parents. Because we believe that college students are young adults and should be learning how to be personally responsible for their own lives and activities, we usually work directly with them. It is not our practice to contact parents or guardians unless the sharing of a problem is necessary to protect the student or others from serious harm, or it is part of a comprehensive plan to deal with alcohol-related problem behavior. In the event that your daughter or son has violations of the Student Handbook regulations that are serious and/or frequent, or your student is reluctant to obtain assistance for problem behaviors, we will discuss with the student the possibility of their sharing the information with their parents. Finally, in the case of critical medical or personal emergencies, parents will be contacted with or without the student's knowledge.

I fully expect the coming years to be great ones for you and your son or daughter. The community of students, faculty and staff at Luther College is a strong and joyous one; our participation with you only adds to our sense of shared community. I hope you will share your concerns, suggestions, and comments with me, or others on the Student Life staff. I'm looking forward to meeting you and your student!

Sincerely,

Ann Highum
Vice President and Dean for Student Life