《推荐全球十大博彩公司排行榜》布鲁斯·福特23届学生

Nothing could have fully prepared me for the overwhelming feelings I experienced when dropping our daughter off at Bryn Mawr for the first time: excitement about all that lay ahead for her, 还有孩子离开的心痛. Everything came together in a private emotional supernova: the birthdays, 一长串骄傲的第一次, the many successes and frustrations over the last eighteen years, 以及父母不可估量的爱.

After spending an hour or two helping my daughter settle into her room, it was time to say goodbye. She took a moment to pose for a quick snap of her walking through the front door of Rhoads Hall, 她的新家. 我在机场安顿下来的时候, I sent the photo to the rest of the 家庭: “At this moment, 伊薇说了再见和你好.“我的标题有点伤感, but there was no denying that it was a huge moment for all of us: the beginning of college had arrived.

Our daughter’s arrival at Bryn Mawr marked the end of her long, 深思熟虑地寻找她的梦想大学. When Evie started talking about the qualities she was looking for in a college, Bryn Mawr had been among a handful of obvious choices. We had long admired colleagues and classmates who attended Bryn Mawr, and Bryn Mawr seemed to fit our daughter’s vision of the ideal college. Non-negotiable for Evie was her decision to attend a small liberal arts college, 哪个会提供小班教学, 喜欢教本科生的教授, and a chance to know many of the people she would study, 工作, 和你一起生活. She wanted to be in or near a big city with good public transportation, and on a campus where she could pursue her interests in politics, 社会, 女性的健康. Her mom and I wanted her to find a school whose values would resonate with her and challenge her, and we envisioned an academically rigorous college with a national and international student body. All three of us wanted Evie to find a school where she would be surrounded by people who would challenge and support her as she grew from late adolescence into young adulthood.

Bryn Mawr ticked off all of these boxes in quick succession—but in the end, I believe a certain amount of alchemy brought Evie and Bryn Mawr together. 当她在高中时第一次拜访布林莫尔时, her student tour guide was brimming with good cheer and confidence, and she dazzled us with her deep knowledge of Bryn Mawr and its many programs. 她强调了自治的传统, 我们参观了宿舍和校园, I developed a sense that student leadership at Bryn Mawr was more than a wish outlined in a glossy brochure in the admissions office: the dorms are self-governed and the students make important decisions that help shape the community they live in. 学校的一切似乎都很合适.

The fateful first drop-off at Bryn Mawr marked more of a beginning than an end for our whole 家庭, 不仅仅是为了我们的女儿. It has been such a pleasure to hear her excitement over everything that has unfolded since the day of that Rhoads dorm photo: new friends from Seattle! 从D.C.! From London, Louisville, Cincinnati, New York, and Baton Rouge! 在伊薇出生的头两年, we heard about her introductory courses and the advisors who helped her with course selections and mapping out her options, 还有她的决定 主修社会学. 随着大三的临近, we heard more about the piles of reading and writing expected of her each week, 还有她的毕业论文计划. We have heard about the early morning practices with her cross-country and track teams, the fun privilege of driving one of the cross-country and track vans, and the occasional classes and the less occasional weekend parties at Haverford.

As a junior, Evie decided to apply to study in one of Bryn Mawr’s 360° course cluster programs, “边缘的欧洲,” which has allowed her and other students to focus on European culture and politics this semester, with a trip to Berlin over spring break as a centerpiece of the experience. 她了解了这个项目, decided which of the 360° offerings aligned with her interests, 然后她申请并被录取了. She recently geared up for the long-awaited trip to Berlin with a dozen or so classmates and their three professors. The students arrived in Berlin at the same moment the city was welcoming its first Ukrainian refugees. One of the professors leading the trip arranged for the students to visit the home of a Berlin artist, and the German Minister of Finance happened by for a visit and spent time in informal conversation with the group. The trip offered the combination of discovery and circumstance that makes travel such an important part of learning to live in the world—and unexpectedly, all of the costs of the 360° program were included in our normal tuition and fees, and the college even provided each student a stipend for their meals and other out-of-pocket expenses.

布林莫尔成了我们女儿的家, and her closest Bryn Mawr friends have become her chosen 家庭. 我满怀希望地预测，四十年后, Evie will treasure her closest college relationships as much as her mother and I have treasured ours: with her Bryn Mawr friends nearby or on speed dial, we know that she will be prepared to step into adulthood, and to share the many challenges and successes of the 工作, 家庭, 等待着的生活.