2008 Parent of the Year

Junior Nicole Anik-Wells had a once-in-lifetime opportunity during Cardinal Family Weekend — a chance to publicly proclaim her appreciation for her parents for the love and support they have given her throughout her life that have helped her become a successful university student and person.

Based on an essay she wrote, her parents, Peter and Dalia Anik, received our first Parent of the Year Award earlier this semester.

It isn’t unusual for a university to recognize those who contribute to its success. As a normal part of what we do, we honor outstanding students, researchers, faculty and staff. We decided this year to break new ground and recognize the people who help make our students successful — their parents. They provide the foundations upon which our students build the rest of their lives. As proof to that, we had 45 nominees this year.

The Cardinal Family Weekend itself also is ground breaking. We know that our students don’t attend college in isolation. They are parts of families, and those families need to feel as much a part of our community as their students do. Cardinal Family Weekend provides a focused time for parents to visit their students and explore campus and our organizations.

Families went to the football game, checked out the Cardinal Block Party and had lunch with our president. We think the weekend went well, and we’re looking forward to making it and the Parent of the Year Award an annual tradition.