November 2 & 3, 2018
Parent & Family Weekend is a time to visit campus, enjoy talks, attend performances, and other family-friendly activities. It is also the perfect occasion to experience the rich array of student opportunities and resources Reed has to offer, while also spending quality time with your student.
Online registration has now closed. We look forward to having you on campus, where you can still register at Registration & Hospitality.
Parent & Family Weekend Schedule
Please note: schedule is subject to change. If you have additional questions about Parent & Family Weekend, please visit our FAQs. If you require additional assistance, contact us directly at pfw@reed.edu.
Friday, November 2, 2018
Registration & Hospitality
8:30 a.m.–3 p.m.
Prexy Living Room
Bookstore Hours
9 a.m.–5 p.m.
Gray Campus Center
Opening Lecture: Mike Brody, Vice President for Student Services
9:30–10:15 a.m.
Eliot Hall chapel
Begin your Parent & Family Weekend with Mike Brody, Vice President for Student Services, who will talk about nurturing students’ passions and interests, opportunities that foster leadership skills, and how students learn and thrive at Reed.
Paradox Coffee Shop Hours
10 a.m.–10 p.m.
Tours
10:30 a.m. and 1 p.m.
Please note: space is limited, and sign up sheets for each tour will be available in Prexy from 8:30 a.m.–3 p.m.
Choose from several tours and explore Reed’s campus. Tour Reed’s nuclear reactor, the only undergraduate-operated reactor in the nation; our new Outdoor Center in the Watzek Sports Center; the mysterious labyrinth of steam tunnels that live within the depths of Reed; or our beloved canyon, the 28-acre watershed located in the heart of campus.
- Reed canyon, meet on the Eliot side of the Blue Bridge
- Reactor, meet in the chemistry building lobby
- Reed Sports Center, meet in the lobby (the entrance is adjacent to Kaul Auditorium)
- Steam tunnels, meet in Eliot Hall outside of admission
Leadership & Community-building at Reed
10:30 a.m.–11:30 a.m.
Gray Campus Center, Rooms B, C & D
Join this panel to meet students and staff from our multicultural resource center (MRC) and learn about how students develop leadership skills through programming that identifies and nurtures their passions. Founded by a group of students 25 years ago, the MRC is a vital part of the Reed community dedicated to enhancing students’ leadership skills, enriching the academic experience, fostering community building, exploring social and cultural issues, and celebrating cultural traditions.
Financial Aid Office Hours
1–5 p.m.
Eliot Hall 202
Meet one-on-one with a dedicated financial aid staff member to get answers to any questions you may have related to financial aid or work-study at Reed.
Study Abroad Info Session
1–1:50 p.m.
Vollum Lounge
Exchange programs can broaden a student’s perspective, provide academic enrichment and personal growth, and, in the case of studying abroad, encourage global engagement. Learn about Reed’s study abroad and off-campus study programs and how to incorporate these opportunities into your student’s undergraduate experience.
Library Special Collections & Archives Tour
1–1:50 p.m.
Tour starts in the library lobby
Our Special Collections & Archives collects, preserves, and provides access to rare books, manuscripts, college archives, and other primary source materials with enduring historical value. Many of these treasures have been utilized in student research and thesis projects over the years; some of these treasures are thesis projects. Space is limited.
Open Calligraphy Hours
2–4 p.m.
Psychology 102 & 103
Join the Scriptorium and learn about the history and revival of calligraphy at Reed. What began in 1948 as the Graphic Arts Studio grew to become one of the defining visual elements of the Reed campus until the program ended in 1984. Professor Lloyd Reynolds (Reed, 1929-1969) inspired Beat poets and the design of the digital typefaces on our personal computers. In 2012 the Calligraphy Initiative in Honor of Lloyd J. Reynolds was established to restore the art of calligraphy to the Reed campus. Join Gregory MacNaughton, '89 for an illustrated lecture on the history of calligraphy at Reed followed by a lesson in the Italic handwriting that inspired it all.
Center for Life Beyond Reed Open House
2–4 p.m.
Prexy
You (and your student) are welcome to drop by Prexy to sit by the fire and learn more about what life beyond Reed means. Our professional career and fellowship advisers as well as peer career advisers will be on hand to answer your questions about how to purposely explore your professional life in alignment with your academic life.
Thriving At Reed Panel
2–2:50 p.m.
Vollum lounge
Join us for a panel discussion focusing on meaningful involvement and the various ways that your student can build networks and participate in the Reed community. This panel will include staff from the Office for Student Engagement, Athletics, Fitness & Outdoor Programs, Residence Life, and Multicultural Resource Center.
Reed Architecture & History Tour
2:30–4 p.m.
Sign up in Prexy.
Meet near Old Dorm Block on the quad.
This 90-minute tour is provided by Reed alumnus Paul Edison Lahm ’83. It is an exciting exploration of Reed and Portland history through campus architecture. Space is limited.
Fireside Chat with Bruce Smith
3–3:50 p.m.
Gray lounge in Kaul Auditorium
Sit around the fire with Dr. Bruce Smith, Dean of Students, and enjoy a conversation about student life at Reed. This is a great opportunity to bring your questions that you don’t know who to ask.
Family Reception
4–5 p.m.
Performing Arts Building, 1st floor
Open Climbing Hours
6–8 p.m.
Outdoor Center
Shabbat Service & Dinner
7–9:30 p.m.
Visit the Chabad at Reed Jewish Student Center to meet members of the Reed Jewish community from all backgrounds and affiliations. Enjoy a wholesome, warm, happy, loving, delicious evening. Located across from the north parking lot at 3355 SE Steele St. Please enter using the front (orange) door.
Reed Theatre Presents: Fefu and Her Friends
7:30–9:30 p.m.
Performing Arts Building, Diver Studio Theatre
Enjoy the theatre department's fall production, written by Cuban American playwright María Irene Fornés. Fefu and Her Friends is a dynamic stage production that poses questions of gender dynamics and societal expectations through a passionate tale of eight women.
Tickets can be purchased online or by calling 503/777-7284.
Saturday, November 3, 2018
Registration & Hospitality
8:30 a.m.
Vollum Atrium & Lounge
Registration materials will be available for pickup in the atrium of Vollum on Saturday morning. Please join us for coffee and a light breakfast in Vollum lounge.
Remarks with Acting President Hugh Porter
9 a.m.
Vollum Lecture Hall
Parent Exploration Sessions
10 a.m.–noon
Attend breakout sessions led by staff and faculty teams on topics of special interest to parents.
Session One (choose from below)
10–10:50 a.m.
How to Help Your Reedie: Beginning an Academic Journey (Recommended for parents of first-year students)
Vollum Hall
Focus on how to help your student get the most out of their freshman year. Topics include how your student can best explore and define an academic direction, how to take advantage of resources, how to work with an adviser, and how parents can best support their students.
Choosing a Major (Recommended for parents of sophomores)
Vollum 116
Understand how your student will be supported as they choose a major, how to work with an adviser, and the appropriate steps needed to complete the process of declaring a major.
Center for Life Beyond Reed: Career Cohorts and Senior Stewardship (Recommended for parents of juniors and seniors)
Vollum 110
As students embark on their final years at Reed, the Center for Life Beyond Reed strives to prepare them for finding their place in the world. Learn about strategic programming that the center provides to instill lifelong skills and connections to the world beyond Reed.
Session Two (choose from below)
11–11:50 a.m.
The Junior Qual and Thesis–Science/Math/Psychology Majors (recommended for parents of juniors and seniors)
Vollum 110
Familiarize yourself with what your student should expect from the junior Qual experience in the Sciences and get advice if your student needs to retake the qual. There is a lot of variation in the Reed senior theses, but successful ones are nearly always based on a central question that the author attempts to answer: the thesis of the thesis. Learn more about the thesis journey for Science majors.
The Junior Qual and Thesis–Humanities/Arts/Social Science Majors (recommended for parents of juniors and seniors)
Vollum 116
Familiarize yourself with what your student should expect from the junior qual experience in the humanities and get advice if your student needs to retake the qual. There is a lot of variation in the Reed senior theses, but successful ones are nearly always based on a central question that the author attempts to answer: the thesis of the thesis. Learn more about the thesis journey for humanities majors.
Center for Life Beyond Reed: Communities of Purpose (recommended for parents of first-year and sophomore students)
Vollum Lecture Hall
As Reedies come to know themselves, their passions, and their place in the community, the Center for Life Beyond Reed frames that conversation with peer-to-peer support and helps first and second year students answer the “why” (their purpose) before attempting to answer the “what” (what am I going to do?).
Paradox Coffee Shop Hours
11 a.m.–11 p.m.
Bookstore Hours
Noon–5 p.m.
Reed Architecture & History Tour
1–2:30 p.m.
Sign up in Vollum Hall at registration.
Meet near Old Dorm Block on the quad.
This 90-minute tour is provided by Reed alumnus Paul Edison Lahm ’83, and is an exciting exploration of Reed and Portland history through campus architecture. Space is limited.
Center for Life Beyond Reed Open House
1–3 p.m.
Prexy
You (and your student) are welcome to drop by Prexy to sit by the fire with us and learn more what life beyond Reed means. Our professional career & fellowship advisors as well as peer career advisors will be on hand to answer your questions about how to purposely explore your professional life in alignment with your academic life.
Open Climbing Hours
3–5 p.m.
Outdoor Center
Reed Theatre Presents: Fefu and Her Friends
7:30–9:30 p.m.
Performing Arts Building, Diver Studio Theatre
Enjoy the theatre department's fall production, written by Cuban American Playwright María Irene Fornés. Fefu and Her Friends is a dynamic stage production that poses questions of gender dynamics and societal expectations through a passionate tale of eight women.
Tickets can be purchased online or by calling 503/777-7284.