Alexa Donnelly | Contributing Writer
The Student Parent Soc had their first Family Hallowe’en Party last Friday evening in the Parlor, just off the SU Café. The society was set up last year by parents who wanted to be able to get their kids involved in their college life and also meet people who were trying to juggle studying and raising a family at the same time.
There was lots on offer for your average child at the party – a magician (what’s Hallowe’en without some spooky magic?), pumpkin carving and also creepy crawlies to pass around! It was a really approachable event for kids of all ages – the age group ranged from six weeks to nine or ten years old. Most of the kids really loved getting an extra excuse to dress up – there were lots of princesses, witches, wizards and superheroes. Isabella Tierney, age five, said that she really enjoyed the puppet show put on by the magician. Cameron Drumm said that his favourite part of the party was when he got to hold the creepy crawlies – he held a centipede, a cockroach and a stick insect. He decided to bow out when the spiders came out though because he said he has arachnophobia.
During the event, I spoke to Matthew Moore, a Junior Freshman Law and Business student (and treasurer of the Student Parent Society) about why he got involved at the start of the year. He found out about the society during Freshers’ Week, two weeks after his firstborn, Senan, was born, feeling that it was easier to relate to other people at the same stage of life as him. Little Senan also turned out to the event, although I think he found it a little tiring, sleeping through most of our encounter. Despite the rigors of early parenthood, Matthew was really enjoying his time at Trinity and found being a dad a great motivation to do well in his degree, giving Senan all the opportunities he could.
Although the vibes at the event were massively positive, there was an acknowledgment by most parents that studying while parenting is a really difficult task. It’s often met with a lack of services by college and indifference by fellow students and staff. Elaine Tierney (mum of 5 year old Isabella and student of Children’s and General Nursing) said that she sometime finds it difficult to juggle all of her responsibilities, and that there is a lack of awareness of parent’s needs by staff. One particular thing that she found jarring was that if she in ten minutes late to her lectures she will not have attended the class, which is mandatory. This can be really stressful when something goes wrong when packing the kids of to school and nursery in the morning.
She also thought that there could be more emotional support or even awareness around college – she is rarely asked how the kids are or how she’s getting along with everything by her supervisors or other students. Melissa Rossatter (Psychology) and Adrienne Drumm (Irish Studies) both noted how difficult it was to get involved in regular student life and events around campus because they both have to get home as early as possible in the evening. This leads to parents being a silent minority among the student population.
Kylie Shannon, Vice Chair of the Student Parent Soc, was also disappointed in the lack of supports available for parents in Trinity – but the society will continue to provide a forum for parents to meet up to share their experiences, both with and without their kids! There are many more events in the pipeline, including a trip to Glendalough, so if you’d like to get you and your family involved, keep an eye out.
