Deans Introduce Online Directory For PEA Parents

In an email to Academy parents on Oct. 19, Dean of Students Melissa Mischke announced the creation of a new online parent directory. The Deans have been collaborating with the Office of Institutional Advancement and Information Technology Services to create the Parent Directory, which will be accessible through the PEA Parent Portal later this month. It will display contact and student information for Exeter families online and make it easier for parents to connect and coordinate gatherings. Parents’ reactions have been positive so far, and many are hopeful that it will strengthen community relationships.

According to Assistant Director of Alumni and Parent Relations Jan Woodford, the administration began planning the directory three years ago after parents expressed need for a platform where adults of the Exeter community could connect and communicate. Exeter parent Andrea Fleming commented, “At Exeter, I’m part of several different parent networks that cut across grades and across dorms. Exeter students are involved in such a wide range of activities that their families need a way to stay in touch with all the different communities their children are a part of.”

"At Exeter, I’m part of several different parent networks that cut across grades and across dorms. Exeter students are involved in such a wide range of activities that their families need a way to stay in touch with all the different communities their children are a part of.”

Parent Susan Littlefield said that a parent’s directory could also serve as a resource for parents who want to help their children with schoolwork. “If your child is struggling with something at school, you can certainly reach out to the school about it, but sometimes other parents whose children have gone through the same experiences can be a really great resource,” she said. Parent Patty DiTullio agreed, saying that she “would be happy to speak with parents of new students and answer any questions they might have.”

Director of Parent Giving Laura Schwartz believes the directory will be a great resource for families who wish to organize parent gatherings independent of official school events. “I’ve received a lot of requests from parents in San Francisco, in Shanghai and all other places who want to host a social event. They ask me to give them the contacts for parents in their area but I can’t because I don’t have permission. Now, a parent who wants to host something can simply go on the directory and reach out,” she commented. Echoing these sentiments, Janice Ziemba, the Dean of Student Office’s Administrative Manager, said that the directory would facilitate conversations and gatherings, adding “parents can more easily make updates to personal information like email address and phone number, because right now the only way to do that is sending the Dean’s Office an email.”

Another strong argument for the creation of a parent’s directory is that even without the school’s involvement, parents are already trying to establish informal networks, using different forms of social media. “There is a self-formed, unofficial day student parent Facebook group,” said DiTullio, though she noted that it “hadn’t been particularly active.” To coordinate carpooling, day student parents have also received a printed directory by town of other day student families. “In China there’s a wechat group for parents to connect,” said Chuck Ramsay, Director of Major Gifts and current Exeter parent, who recently travelled to Hong Kong on a tour of Asia. “If the school doesn’t do it, they’re going to try to find each other anyway,” he added.

Most of the work that went into setting up the directory happened throughout the previous year. According to Woodford, the eight-person team consisted of personnel from the Institutional Advancement office and the Dean’s Office and IT, working in conjunction with On Modules, a private management software vendor. “It took a long time to get them do exactly what we want. The colors, the logos, the wrapping around of the product has to reflect Exeter,” said Woodford. “Also, it has to be seamless for the parents to go from the parent portal to the directory without having to enter another password.”

The IT department is currently running final tests. “I’m excited. It’s been a long time in the making; we’re thrilled that it’s going to happen now,” Mischke commented.

Some families have raised concerns regarding safety and privacy issues, which the administration has tried to address by allowing parents to choose and limit the amount of information they share. Parents not wishing to be displayed on the directory were also given the opportunity to opt out before Oct 27, though both Schwartz and Woodford affirmed that even after the directory was up and running, parents could still choose to discontinue having their information displayed at any time. “There’s a button you can click on to hide your home address or where you work,” said Ziemba.

Fleming expressed her satisfaction with these measures. “The main concern in the task has been to keep students safe and protect people’s privacy. It’s clear that the school is being mindful of this. The fact that parents can be in charge of their own data makes it a lot more convenient and safe for us,” she said. Similarly, parent Gail Browne said that she was planning to opt in, but might “look at the kind of information they’re sharing and pick and choose.” She added, “I think some families do have privacy concerns [...] some people might not want to share their contact information with a large audience.”

Parent Sharmi Ahmad stated that she was comfortable displaying her email address and phone number on the directory. “All schools have it at some point,” she said. “Over breaks or even on weekends, sometimes kids want to stay at each other's houses, so I would like to have information about the parents to ensure that my children are safe.”

Parent Cathlyn Cantone believes the directory will be beneficial, especially for a global community like Exeter. “Our children attend a boarding school and come from all over the world. This will be a way of connecting all of us,” she commented.