For many freshmen, Family Weekend is the first time since move-in day that their parents have seen them on campus—and for others, it's a weekend of getting to know friends' families while their own are at home. The Chronicle's Amelia Cheatham, Samantha Neal and Sydney Sarachek spoke to freshmen about their first family weekend.
“I was a little bored not having my parents here, but it gave me the opportunity to get a lot of work done that I needed to finish.”—freshman Nick Lockett
“Especially since it comes in the middle of midterms, it’s a little sad not having my family here, but it’ll make Thanksgiving all that better.”—freshman Shivam Dave
“I felt like I was doing things with my dad that I wouldn’t have necessarily done on my own. I got to explore the area more since we had a car.”—freshman Krista Osaphl-Ong
“It’s cool to finally meet people’s parents because here you only know people off of themselves, not like in high school when you know someone in the context of their family. It’s funny when you actually meet people’s parents, and they are a lot like their kid.”—freshman Sarah Rapaport
"My parents didn’t come. It’s kind of sweet that everyone’s parents are coming and that we see lots of parents and dogs and sometimes little siblings. I’m not quite jealous of you guys, because I can still FaceTime. I like this event, it’s sweet.”—freshman Yiou Wang
“It was a positive experience. My dad came; he really enjoyed it. [We] went to see Pitchforks, DUI. I had fun spending time with my dad because it had been a long time since I’d seen him. Homework kind of sucked afterward, but that’s beside the point.”—freshman Nikhil Jain
“I was parentless, so I felt horrible. My parents can’t afford to just come out for a weekend like that because they have to work and it takes a whole day to travel from California. Seeing everyone with their parents made me sad.”—freshman Amanda Jankowski?
“I enjoyed having parents here. I didn’t really participate in any Family Weekend activities because we just went off campus and shopped. It was kind of like a mini vacation.”—freshman Nikita Gawande
“It was great to spend time with my family on campus, where we were able to enjoy Duke community events like Countdown to Craziness together. While my parents did not get to see Shooters, Cameron Indoor should suffice.” –freshman Dylan Gambardella
“My parents didn’t come, but I didn’t feel left out or anything. It was actually kind of fun to meet my friends' parents, and hearing all their dads' corny jokes about college life.” –freshman Sam Oliver
“My mom came because my dad was out of the country. She had a great time. We went to the Nasher and toured the Miró exhibit, had lunch in downtown Durham and toured the gardens, as well as the Chapel. Although I didn't think she was ready to take on Shooters, there's still plenty of time for that.”—freshman Khaliq Sanda
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