From the Dean of Students' Desk

Welcome to the fourth issue of the 2005-06 academic year for Staying Connected, a newsletter for parents of first-year students. We hope you'll enjoy the informative articles which have been written by students and staff members.

The campus is full of activity at this time of year. We have three major construction projects underway on campus. The new residence halls are now under roof and the brick is going up on the exterior of the buildings. The new Opera Theatre building on Hazel Avenue is a little farther along than that. And the new Music Hall for the Community Music School on Garden Avenue is about to begin rising out of the ground.

We now have more student organizations than ever before. For a full list, check out: http://www.webster.edu/studlife/stud_orgs/studorgs.html. Hopefully, your son or daughter has found a group that interests him or her. We are the middle of the basketball and swimming season. And the spring sports teams are beginning their workouts in preparation for their competitive seasons beginning in March. For more information on Webster Athletics, go to: http://www.webster.edu/athletics/.

By the time you are reading this newsletter, you have probably had a chance to talk with your son or daughter about their fall semester grades. Getting used to the quality of writing that is expected in college courses is one of the big adjustments for many students. I hear many faculty members bemoan the poor quality of writing that they see in their freshmen courses. I also hear employers talk about the poor quality of writing that they see from college graduates. Webster University offers excellent help to students who would like to improve their writing skills. My advice is for you to encourage your son or daughter to make good use of our Writing Center. More information about the Writing Center can be obtained at: http://www.webster.edu/acadaffairs/asp/wc/index.html.

We hope to have another newsletter out to you early in March. We'd love to get your suggestions for future articles.

Go Gorloks!

Sincerely,
Ted Hoef, Ph.D.
Associate Vice President and Dean of Students

Comments and Suggestions

We hope to publish this Webster University Newsletter for Parents of First-Year Students at least once or twice a semester. If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future newsletters, please send them to hoeftl@webster.edu. We look forward to your comments and suggestions.

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