My office window overlooks the campus lawn and through it I can see students hurrying to classes, returning to dorm rooms, and heading to Chapel for morning worship. I like the view from my window. It helps me feel connected to students and the daily hum of the campus. I imagine that Calvin parents would also enjoy my view, perhaps wishing for the opportunity to see their sons and daughters walking by.
Part of my job in parent relations is to share this fine view from my window
with Calvin parents. So here continues a column for this newsletter where I
will attempt to do just that.
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Jim Van Wingerden ’76
Parent Relations Director
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I often enjoy a half-hour walk on campus each
day, for the exercise and also just to see what’s
happening on the campus. As I walk by classroom buildings, the Commons, Johnny’s and
the dorms I pass by several hundred students
in a short period of time. It’s always interesting
to note just how many students I see walking
and talking on a cell phone.
College students today certainly have
many tools at hand to keep them in touch
with their friends and family—certainly
more “toys” than I had when I was a college
student in the 1970s. Instant messaging.
Text messaging. E-mail. Wireless Internet.
And of course, cell phones.
And for about 98.6% of Calvin students,
add Facebook.com to that list.
Facebook.com has become a popular
phenomenon amongst Calvin students,
as well as most college students in the U.S.
There are presently more than 8 million
members of Facebook.com from more than
2,100 colleges and universities and 22,000
high schools—Facebook is now the seventh most
trafficked U.S. Web site. Approximately
15,000 new Facebook accounts are created
every day.
Virtually every Calvin student (and most
recent graduates) has a Facebook account—
we estimate that there are more than 4,000
Facebook accounts associated with Calvin
College. (Facebook no longer releases this
statistic for individual schools but that was
the number they reported to me last spring).
An online database that connects students
through social networks, Facebook allows
members to create a personalized, online profile which can be viewed by friends and
others who have access to the site. Students
post their contact information, photos,
activities, organizations, hobbies, and so
forth. Students can also join and create
special groups, allowing them to link up
with others who share similar interests.
These Facebook groups can be very broad
or very narrow in scope. Here is a sample
of the hundreds of Calvin Facebook groups:
• Education is no longer my major
• At Calvin single and proud of it
• Gorgeous gals of 1st Kals
• I am supposed to be studying but I am
on Facebook
• Movie Quoters anonymous
• I am not related to anyone who works
here or goes here
• Writers@Calvin
• Orientation Group 42... That’s How We
Do it!
College administrators at Calvin and other
institutions have become increasingly concerned
about student safety and privacy in
conjunction with Facebook and other online
communities and are reminding students
to post only information which they are
comfortable with anyone having access to.
Students don’t always recognize that once
they post personal information on Facebook,
it becomes very public. When on-line profiles
can be accessed by others, issues such as
identity theft and cyber-stalking can arise.
 Many schools, including Calvin, have
responded to students who post pictures of
illegal or inappropriate activities, after these
pictures were brought to the attention of
administrators. John Witte, Calvin’s Dean of
Residence Life comments: “These sites are public, and there should be no expectation of
privacy. Not to mention that we expect more
from a Calvin student, in terms of behavior
and maturity.” Witte echoes the advice of
many experts in this area—talk to your
students about their web-life, particularly
with regard to privacy and inappropriate
self-disclosure. “It’s a new frontier, and we’re
all learning as we go.”
Should parents be concerned? Perhaps
it’s more appropriate to say that parents
should be informed and aware. Chances
are that most college parents are already
experienced with having their high school
and college students participate in online
communities (MySpace, Xanga, etc.).
Facebook is somewhat unique in that each
college’s Facebook domain is an exclusive
community and can be accessed only by
members from that institution. So a Calvin
Facebook user cannot access another college’s
domain unless invited by a member
from that school and visa versa. Recognize that college students today have
a strong desire to be connected to friends
and families, and Facebook is just another
way to stay connected. This was also true in
the past—there are just so many more ways
for students to connect today than was true
10, 20 or 30 years ago. A student’s interest
in connecting with friends via Facebook is
not necessarily something that should
cause alarm. But here are a few points for
parents to consider:
• Be aware of the Facebook phenomenon
and of its widespread nature at Calvin
and in higher education—virtually
“everybody is doing it.”
• Recognize that Facebook can become an
“addiction” for some students and can
detract time that should be spent on
studies. As with any distraction from
studies (video games, TV, etc.), be alert
to signs that Facebook is becoming an
obsession. Encourage your student to
recognize the pitfalls of spending too
much time on Facebook.
• Encourage your student to be discreet
and discerning in the amount and type
of information that is shared on
Facebook.
If you are interested in learning more
about Facebook you can access these
online resources:
• The Great Communicator (Inc.
Magazine):
• The Web’s Hottest Site (Rolling Stone)
• Facebook Allows Old Friends to Meet
Up (University Star)
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