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Parents and Families

Parents & Families

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College is a major transition - for students, as well as for parents and families. However, plenty of information is available to make the transition as easy as possible.

The U-M Parents website is a detailed resource that provides information specifically designed to support parents and families. It contains information about academics, student life, health, safety, and financial, other many other topics. Student Life's Parents & Families website works in partnership with the U-M Parents website to provide an up-to-date quarterly newsletter, Family Matters, an information-packed newsletter designed for current Wolverines' parents and loved ones.

Parents and incoming students who don't know their way around campus will benefit from visiting Campus Information Centers (CIC). CIC offers maps and directions around campus, a building search, an acronym decoder, and plenty of other tools and resources for helping you find your way on campus. They are open 19 hours every day and are ready to answer any type of question you may have!

Our Family Matters Newsletter provides current information about campus life and offers resources that can help support you in your supporting role for your Wolverine. In addition, subscribers will receive occasional messages sharing the University's response to unexpected or emergency situations.

To receive Family Matters via email, submit your contact information using our new, streamlined online subscription form. It takes less than a minute to complete and takes effect immediately. To learn more about Family Matters, view the subscription options.

Student health and travel abroad insurance plans are also available through University Health Service (UHS).

If you are just interested in happenings around campus, check out the University Record, which puts out a daily newsletter containing University news.

Lastly, take a look around the Student Life website. You'll find information about all of the resources the University offers its students. If it's relevant for your student, it's relevant for you as a parent.

Helping your student protect themselves against monkeypox

Earlier this month, your Wolverine received information from U-M Chief Health Officer Robert D. Ernst about the monkeypox virus (MPV) ahead of the fall 2022 term. Working closely with the Washtenaw County Health Department, U-M’s Public Health Response team has been closely monitoring the evolving situation with MPV and its potential impact on the U-M community. Read on for what you and your Wolverine need to know about MPV. 

Navigating COVID-19 on campus

The University of Michigan recently shared with your Wolverine updates to both its COVID-19 testing requirements and Vax Viewer, a tool that allows campus community members to submit and view the status of their COVID-19 vaccination information all in one place. Read on for the latest campus community expectations around COVID-19 vaccinations, face coverings on campus, and quarantine and isolation housing.

Our time with your student

Fall 2022 is upon us, and I am beyond excited to welcome you and your student to campus. A question I often get from parents and families is “What can I do to support my student when they’re away from home?”

As a parent myself, I understand the worry that can come with sending your student to college. When my daughters went off to college, I knew I couldn't be involved in every aspect of their student experience. Still, I didn’t hold myself back from encouraging them to get involved. 

That’s what I encourage you to do now. When you talk with your student, either during move-in or in the weeks and months of the Fall semester, encourage them to join clubs, get connected with their residence hall communities, find an on-campus job, and sign up for a Recreational Sports fitness class—anything that expands their horizons, who they know, and what they think they can do. 

A second and no less important thing that you can do is to talk to them about the importance of their role in a large, shared community. Our community is full of people of diverse backgrounds, beliefs, orientations, and aspirations. This is a beautiful opportunity for your student to learn and connect with their peers, and it is everyone’s individual responsibility to respect and foster this community. 

Update your email preferences

You are receiving this message because you or your Wolverine subscribed you to the Family Matters Newsletter, published by the University of Michigan's Division of Student Life. This fall, Family Matters Newsletter is moving to a new email platform to provide improved communications with our current Wolverines’ parents, families and loved ones.  

Update Your Email Preferences: Family Matters is Changing Email Platforms

Beginning next month, the Family Matters Newsletter is moving to a new email platform to provide improved communications with our current Wolverines’ parents, families and loved ones.  

To ensure you do not miss future editions of Family Matters, please complete our new, streamlined online subscription form before March 3, 2022. 

Published by the University of Michigan Division of Student Life, Family Matters is designed to provide you with the latest news from campus and access to resources that can help support you in your supporting role for your Wolverine. In addition, subscribers receive occasional messages sharing the University's response to unexpected or emergency situations.

If you no longer want to receive Family Matters, you can use our online unsubscribe form to opt out of future messages. Current subscribers can also access this form to update their preferences at any time by clicking the “unsubscribe” link at the bottom of this and future Family Matters emails. 

However, please be aware that being removed from the Family Matters group: 

  • Means you will no longer receive any future targeted announcements about the University's response to unexpected or emergency situations from Student Life.
  • Ensures you will no longer receive Family Matters newsletters, but does not remove your email address from other University of Michigan electronic communications to which you are subscribed.  

A COVID Update

Dear Parents and Families,

We wanted to make sure you were aware of the latest COVID-19 campus information as we approach the upcoming spring break.

On Friday, the Campus Maize and Blueprint website was updated with a university message, which included information on continued case number improvements on campus and in the county, testing guidance for spring break travel, U-M’s face covering requirement, and vaccination stats and booster compliance.      

As a reminder, your Wolverine was required to report their COVID-19 booster information by Feb. 4, or as soon as possible based on their eligibility. If they have not done so already, they should get a booster as soon as possible and upload their information using the form in Wolverine Access to avoid accountability measures. 

In addition, a new resource is available to help your Wolverine determine whether they are in compliance with the U-M vaccination policy, including the booster requirement.

To stay up to date throughout the week, you may also view the Campus Maize and Blueprint site. 

Register for presidential search listening sessions

​Dear Parents and Families,

Beginning this week, campus community members are invited to attend a virtual listening session to share expectations for the new University of Michigan president and perspectives on the ideal candidate profile.  

We are writing to personally invite you to register to join your student and other campus community members and supporters at one of the following sessions: 

While each session will focus on a particular university constituency, individuals are welcomed to attend any session that works with their schedule. 

These sessions will allow Regents and members of the Presidential Search Committee to hear from you, and participants will be asked to focus their comments on two questions:

  • During the next three to five years, what priorities should the new president set to be successful?
  • What background, qualifications, and experience should the next president possess to be successful in advancing the University mission?

Registration is required to attend. 

In addition, those who are unable to attend or who would like to share additional thoughts are welcome to complete this online survey.

For additional information, visit the presidential search website.

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