Family Letter Sample?

TimeCruncher
Sun, 06 Jul 2008 13:56:33 +0000

Your post caught my eye because I’ve never heard of a college requesting a “family letter.” Clark’s request sounds weird to me.

Just out of curiosity, I browsed Clark’s website for information about the “Family letter.” The search function returned a Class of 2012 Summer Mailings list. Included in the June Mailings Packet #5 is the “Solicitation of Family letter.” The fact that Clark solicits a “Family letter” indicates that parental submission is voluntary, not mandatory. It sounds to me as though Clark is fishing for private information which parents and students are not obligated to disclose.

If you voluntarily submit a “Family letter,” you can expect it to be placed in your daughter’s permanent file, where it will remain for as long as your daughter is a Clark student (possibly longer), and where it will be available for perusal by an unknown number of Clark personnel.

The private information you might be inclined to disclose to Clark this summer could end up being exactly the sort of private information you and/or your daughter will someday regret having disclosed. (By that time, of course, it will be too late.) I look at it this way: if your daughter has already provided Clark with enough private information to be considered for admission, then Clark already has as much private information about your daughter as it needs to know.

I hold a narrow definition of “family,” and I am wary of any institution–be it an employer, school, or other organization–which touts itself as a “family.” Clark promotes itself in this manner. Regardless, family is family, Clark is Clark, and Clark is not your daughter’s new “family.”

You could be “lost as to what to say,” because your gut is telling you that there is something odd about Clark’s request. Trust your gut. Privacy is an issue. Be careful.