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Hospitality Suite
Sit back and relax...
By Nadia Datskiv, Class of 2004
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Okay, maybe that's not what most parents say when their children first go away to college. In reality, letting them go can be a painful experience.
Cherry B. Horner, the associate director for Development and Estate Planning at ORU, has a strategic plan to ease the transition for parents when they bring their children to ORU to register for classes. "Since there is not a relaxing place to go on campus, we've created one for them," she says. It's called the Hospitality Suite.
For those parents who are suffering from some separation anxiety, the Hospitality Suite is set up during fall registration on the sixth floor of the Graduate Center in the Regents' Dining Room. It's a place of relief where parents may enjoy refreshments, relax on comfortable class="text" couches, receive prayer, get a fifteen-percent-off bookstore discount coupon, and meet other parents who are going through the same experience.
This year's Hospitality Suite will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Aug. 11. Provided through the Parents and Grandparents Club, "the hospitality suite welcomes parents of new ORU students by giving them an oasis on campus," Horner says.
"We have found ORU parents, grandparents, and guardians enjoy the fellowship of others who also have a student at the university," states President Richard Roberts.
In August 2002, more than 1,000 parents signed in at the Hospitality Suite. "This will be our fourth year, and each year gets better," Horner says.
Not everyone gets to rest at this time, however. In the weeks before orientation/registration and during the day that the suite is open, Horner and her assistants order couches, chairs, balloons, and banners; organize catering; design fliers and posters; assemble more than 1,200 Parent Packets; schedule a photographer; speak at Parents' Orientation; set up sample Finals Week Survival Kits; and more. One feature of the Hospitality Suite enjoyed by the parents is the drawing for the gift basket. This souvenir is filled with assorted foods and gifts, donated by Heart's Desire Gift Baskets.
During enrollment week the Hospitality Suite is hopping, and some parents drop by multiple times. "As alumni, we are delighted to see all these new ideas," shared one parent on a survey form. "We continue to have confirmation this school was the right choice for our son."
It's all worth it when the parents and grandparents get there, Horner believes. "They really appreciate it, and we're thrilled to give them a relaxing moment or two during what can be a stressful time."
The ORU Parents and Grandparents Club was created in 1999 to help meet the needs of parents who have a student at ORU. This organization helps to give parents a connection to the campus and a place they can call for assistance. Its purpose is to promote opportunities for parents to establish a sense of community with one another and help parents learn more about ORU and its programs and policies.
For more information about the club, call 800-822-8203.
