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How college parents can best navigate the emotions of their student’s new world

A girl hugs a woman
Missouri State University
College can be a time of big emotions for freshmen and parents.

The first in a two-part series on college anxiety with Tammy Dixon of the Missouri State University Counseling Center.

Our weekly program, Missouri State Journal, is a collaboration between KSMU Radio and Missouri State University. It's hosted and produced by MSU's Office of Strategic Communication, and it airs each Tuesday morning at 9:45 a.m. on KSMU.

In just one week, more than 20,000 students will head back to campus for the first day of class at Missouri State University. It’s a time of high emotion and big feelings for many, but especially freshmen and their parents.

In this special two-part series, we’ll talk with Tammy Dixon, assistant director of the Missouri State Counseling Center, and take a look at these feelings from both the parent and student perspectives.

As parents navigate life without their child at home — sometimes as empty-nesters — Dixon says it’s a good time to refocus on yourself. Pick that hobby back up or volunteer for a community service.
 
Read the full transcript.

Emily Letterman has worked at Missouri State University since 2023 and is currently the public relations strategist in the Office of Strategic Communication. A longtime journalist with over a decade of reporting on southwest Missouri, she has a bachelor’s degree in English literature from MSU.