Parenting to a Degree: How Family Matters for College Women's Success by Laura T. Hamilton

Author:Laura T. Hamilton [Hamilton, Laura T.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780226183671
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Published: 2016-03-23T00:00:00+00:00

In talking with Andrea about Taylor’s academic progress, it was clear that she had also experienced it: every hurdle Taylor had to clear was one that Andrea helped her to manage. Andrea and Keith were proud of what Taylor had done at MU; however, her success was not particularly surprising, as it represented the culmination of their long-term plans.

Andrea helped Taylor to stay on a pre-dental track that separated her from most of the women on the floor. Professional helicopters supported the development of stronger academic records in part by hand-selecting the institutional environment that their daughters encountered. Most ensured that women were in the most selective, rigorous majors and programs, took classes with tenured professors, and got involved in the right clubs and activities for their résumés. They took advantage of the professional pathway at MU, as it is designed to move students smoothly into well-paid professional careers and graduate programs. The professional pathway was hard to enter and difficult to navigate without assistance.

For example, Anna and Steven opted for Midwest U’s well-ranked Business School, even though there was a good public university system in their home state. This was the only condition under which Erica could go to MU. They made sure that she met all of the qualifications. Anna and Steven had to stretch financially to pay for this. They would end up servicing loans for ten years, when they could have had no loans at all. However, it was a sound choice. As Anna explained, “When Erica went there, she started working hard, and taking the academics more seriously, and really becoming a lot more driven than she was in high school. She was on a path.” In that environment, Erica began to perform very well.

The Business School required that students maintain a minimum GPA. It also had a rigorous academic peer culture, encouraged professionalization (the best-dressed students on campus were from the Business School), and was known for its weekend testing—putting a wrench in Friday and Saturday party plans. At MU, being on the professional pathway took on even more importance than it might have at a school with a less developed party pathway. Professional helicopters’ efforts to navigate students into particular programs protected their offspring from social temptations, discouraged majors with a poor payoff, and fostered achievement.

Professional helicopters also made arrangements to ensure that funds went primarily to enrichment, not socializing. Recall that, unlike pink helicopters, they set up an accountability contract with their daughters: As Anna noted, “If you’re supporting them, you have to have some expectations. Place some minimum standards.” This contract changed the meaning of the financial support parents offered. To some extent, children had to earn it, which may have protected them from negative academic outcomes. It was not only the amount of funds that mattered, but also how they were administered and what they signified.3 If women failed to meet the standard, professional helicopters promised to pull their support. This was a conversation that none of them had to have.

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