<p>Depending on what kind of student your D was in hs, and I’m guessing she was an A-B student based on her first semester grades, she’s probably having a hard enough time dealing with the fact that she got a C herself. What she probably needs is some encouragement rather than a parent flipping out on her. I was looking at getting a C in my Calculus C class this past semester (a pretty important class for an engineering major). For me it was because I had a couple of bad days and had been sick for about a month of the semester. Things happen that you as a parent are not able to control anymore. Unfortunately, we make mistakes and we learn from them. I was incredibly worried about what my parents would think, to the point where I was afraid to tell them about it. Like you said, she can make it up next year, it sounds like she still had a pretty strong first year overall and there are a lot of changes to get adjusted to that first year.</p>
<p>I told my son that I didn’t care what grades he got as long as: (1) he maintained his scholarship; (2) he learned the material. He’s got a 3.2-3.3 overall. After three years of college there’s no yelling; there’s no tension; he’s dong fine; we’re doing fine.</p>
<p>Millions of students and parents would be delighted with a 3.0+ gpa frosh year. Heck I would have been delighted in my day. Remind yourself that college is a huge change from hs. Some students have no problem adjusting while others struggle a bit. It seems that your daughter adjusted okay. </p>
<p>And if she is disappointed, give her encouragement and have her try to identify those areas where she feels she could improve. Maybe you can offer some good advice too.</p>