SRA Parent Immersion Program

The buzz on the SRA campus and among parents recently seems simply to be about parenting. We spend considerable time talking about and assessing parenting styles. This is helpful in determining what has and has not worked for the parents. However, over the past year SRA parents have been asking for more. More details, more hints, more language and more practice working with their daughters. Our parents are looking for specifics. They need more than encouraging advice to “let go and trust the process”. They want to do the best job they can to set structure in their homes and to be effective, loving and confident parents.

In response we have implemented many new features to our program including workshops, orientation for parents, in the moment coaching on visits and a Parent Liaison to work with parents through their questions and concerns. However, the parent of an SRA student recently raised the bar. In an effort to improve her ability to parent her daughter with a “neutral voice” she spent a week on campus. She spent this week studying our staff, how they interacted with students, responded to questions, dealt with conflicts and moved through normal everyday issues and incidents.

Her conclusion, a concise list of the 4 C’s of parenting. She describes them as follows:
Here it is: the 4 'C's'
Be Clear, [give specific requests or directions]
Be Concise,[don't over-explain or be drawn into discussion]
Be Calm, [don't raise a voice level]
Be Consistent [follow up right away and give natural and logical
consequence, positive or negative]

Another parent added the C of Commitment, because as anyone who has participated on this process knows it takes an unwavering dedication to create change (another C). The language is not always natural or intuitive, but the results are tremendous. A healthy, well boundaried parent contributes to a healthy well-boundaried relationship and ultimately a healthy, well-boundaried daughter. While the parenting manual handed out at birth did not explain this, apparently that is how we get those happy and healthy kids.