When anthropology professor Beatriz Reyes-Foster arrived at 麻豆原创 in 2011 she was a little surprised there was no university network for faculty who have children.
There were family-leave workshops for those thinking about starting a family, but there was no grassroots network to help parents who might need a referral for a pediatrician or a good babysitter near campus. And there was no vehicle for discussing topics such as how to correct hundreds of essays while with a teething 1-year-old demanding attention.
She thought back to her days of graduate school in California and recalled the well-known Berkeley Parents Network, which was available to all university employees 聽with children in the San Francisco Bay Area.
鈥淚t was such a wonderful resource,鈥� Reyes-Foster said. 鈥淲hen I had my first child and arrived at 麻豆原创 I thought, why can鈥檛 we have something like that here.鈥�
The Berkeley Parents Network, started by a graduate student in 1993, offers university parents throughout the Bay Area 鈥� more than 32,000 鈥� a host or resources all through email and more recently through a website. Need a last minute babysitter, pediatrician referral or tips on managing your work and personal life? You can find all that on the network, and because many members are academics, there are often in-depth discussions about studies on paid family leave, child development and special education.
Never one to sit around waiting for things to happen, Reyes-Foster launched the 麻豆原创 Faculty Parents Network on Facebook in 2011 with the support of the 麻豆原创 Center for Success of Women Faculty.
The 麻豆原创 page currently has about 85 members that range from staff to full professors. It鈥檚 a closed group, which means people have to ask to be accepted, but being a faculty member or employee at 麻豆原创 is all that鈥檚 needed to gain entry.
The group is a mix of men and women, and the topics covered run the gamut, Reyes-Foster said. Just in the past four months the topics covered by participants have included: a new study on the impact of fluoride on neurological development in children, adjunct pay, declining birthrates, information on free theatre performances around town, and several giveaways of gently used baby furniture.
鈥淭his is a great resource,鈥� said Linda Walters, director of the 麻豆原创 Center for Success of Women Faculty. 鈥淭he page generates healthy discussion about a broad range of topics and also offers members a place to discuss sometimes sensitive topics with people who have gone through the same process and can provide valuable information.鈥�
Currently the network focuses on families with younger children, but Walters would love to see that be expanded to include middle school and high school issues.
Reyes-Foster last year also scheduled a few on-campus meetings based on topics of interest from the Facebook page and playdates for some of the members and their children on weekends.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a work in process, but I know the folks that are active on the page seem to really enjoy it,鈥� she said.
Walters said she hopes to see the page grow in popularity and that the interactions on the page will translate into real-world interactions, which helps build community.
鈥淭his is just the beginning and we鈥檙e very excited to have lots of people on board,鈥� Walters said.
Anyone who is on the 麻豆原创 faculty or staff and is interested in joining this group can search for 鈥溌槎乖� Faculty Parents Network鈥� on Facebook or contact Reyes-Foster at beatriz.reyes-foster@ucf.edu.”