PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — This weekend, more than 1,700 family members will trek to Brown’s campus for Family Weekend.
To kick off 48 hours of lectures, athletics events, performances, open houses and other activities, University President Christina Paxson and Undergraduate Council of Students President Viet Nguyen will officially welcome families with remarks on Friday evening.
Not only does the weekend offer students, parents and others the ideal autumnal setting for a reunion and exploration of Brown and its environs, it also gives families the chance to experience the day-to-day life of the campus. Some will come for the first time — others have made the weekend a yearly tradition.
As the weekend gets underway, five parents — and one sister — who arrive on campus today from as far away from Tokyo and as close by as West Warwick, Rhode Island, shared their hopes for their children, their plans for the weekend and their favorite moments at Brown.
Deepti Mittal (mother)
Student: Sonia Mittal, Class of 2018
Concentration: Economics and psychology
Hometown: New York City
What are you most looking forward to about Family Weekend?
Family Weekend is fun for my husband and me because we get to see Sonia, of course. But it’s also a great way to live the Brown weekend the way that Brown students do. We enjoy being part of it all in a real way.
What will you do while you are here?
We will go to the football game, which is a highlight, and we’ll go apple picking and attend some lectures. I am on the Parents Leadership Council and the President’s Advisory Council on Internships, so we will attend the BrownConnect presentation. Connecting students to the real world and job opportunities is very important, and the University is really working hard on that.
Our daughter also dances with the Brown Badmaash Dance Company, a South Asian fusion dance team, so we’ll attend their performance and celebrate the Indian holiday Diwali with other families in the Brown community.
What is your favorite Brown moment or memory?
I remember standing on the main green with Sonia during Family Weekend of her freshman year. It was a beautiful fall day, the leaves were changing and there were groups of students sitting on the grass. Sonia was so happy about what she was doing and what she was involved in. As a parent, that’s all you want for your child. We felt so much relief and so proud at that moment. I remember standing there and looking out over it all and thinking, “Oh wow, she’s so lucky to be here.”
What do you hope your daughter will learn during her time at Brown?
When Sonia entered Brown, her plan was to go to medical school. But in her first year, she took some economics and psychology classes and fell in love with them. She really took advantage of the Open Curriculum and found her niche, which was so different from anything she had done before. It’s been amazing to see her find her interests and passions in a very deep way. I just hope that she is happy and that she continues to discover her authentic self.
John Radmilovic (father)
Student: Emma E. Radmilovic, Class of 2018
Concentration: Comparative literature and history
Hometown: Newport, Wales
What are you most looking forward to about Family Weekend?
My wife and I have never been to Brown before, so we are eager to see where Emma has been for the last two years. As visitors from old England, we feel very lucky to be able to visit New England at one of the best times of the year. We are also looking forward to getting a taste of college life and meeting Emma’s friends and roommates.
What will you do while you are here?
Emma has a real interest in drama and has arranged for us to see a couple of plays put on by fellow students. We will attend a few student concerts. Providence and the surrounding areas are steeped in history, and one thing we really enjoy doing as a family is walking, so we plan to see as much of Providence by foot as time allows. Also, we live in a town called Newport, so we want to visit its Rhode Island counterpart.
What is your favorite Brown moment or memory?
The highlight so far has not been one single achievement but more our overall sense of Emma finding the right place to grow, learn and flourish as a young adult. We really appreciate the broad range of subjects that are available to study at Brown alongside the concentration subjects. The fourth year of college — there are only three in the U.K. — promotes a much more diverse educational experience.
What do you hope your daughter will learn during her time at Brown?
We as parents and Brown as a university make success possible, but the student has to make it happen. We are confident that when Emma graduates she will have acquired many of the skills she will need to make a positive contribution in whichever field she chooses.
Lisa Mallozzi Tapiero (mother)
Student: Christina “Kiki” Tapiero, Class of 2017
Concentration: Sociology and economics
Hometown: Arlington, Massachusetts
What are you most looking forward to about Family Weekend?
I am most looking forward to seeing Kiki in her “natural habitat,” meeting some of her friends, attending the organized activities and visiting Brown and Providence. I always enjoy the energetic and vibrant atmosphere at Brown, and it’s fun to see how many steps we can take before Kiki runs into someone she knows!
What will you do while you are here?
We will most likely attend some of the a cappella concerts, the Shakespeare on the Green performance and the AXO (Alpha Chi Omega) brunch. We are also hoping to go to a small Mexican restaurant in Providence that Kiki and a friend found.
What is your favorite Brown moment or memory?
One of my favorite Brown memories is playing in the band with Kiki at the Brown vs. Cornell football game at Family Weekend her first year. Another of my favorite moments was when I heard the news that Brown had approved the policy for undocumented and DACA students to be considered as domestic rather than international students, so that they can qualify for more financial aid. I was proud of Kiki for helping to work on that policy during her summer internship, and I was proud of Brown because it was an example of the University’s efforts to support people from different backgrounds and to promote causes related to social justice.
What do you hope your daughter will learn during her time at Brown?
I think Kiki has already gotten a lot out of Brown, but I hope she will make some lifelong friends, be exposed to many new perspectives and points of view, learn to think critically and to write well, and also that she will gain valuable knowledge and experiences from her classes and the many extracurricular activities she does at Brown.
Yumi Kuwana (mother)
Student: Kiyomasa (Kiyo) Kuwana, Class of 2019
(Hiroyuki, Kiyo’s brother, is taking a gap year and will start at Brown in fall 2017)
Concentration: Undeclared
Hometown: Tokyo, Japan, and Greenwich, Connecticut
What are you most looking forward to about Family Weekend?
I’m looking forward to engaging with the Brown community and learning more about the University.
What will you do while you are here?
We hope to meet faculty and administrators at Brown and spend time with other parents who are deeply involved with the University.
What is your favorite Brown moment or memory?
There are a few. Kiyo joined the bird watching club and is furthering his interest in ornithology. He is currently enrolled in a course at Brown where he will write a paper on endangered birds of Maui, where we spend a meaningful amount of time, and their role in Maui mythology and folklore. We are also happy that Kiyo is now friends with a freshman from Somalia, who is an alumnus of Global Citizens Initiative, an international nonprofit that I founded. And last, we have witnessed firsthand the generosity of the Brown community when Professor Steve Rasmussen provided valuable advice to my uncle in Japan who is struggling with Parkinson’s disease.
What do you hope your son will learn during his time at Brown?
Through the open and interdisciplinary curriculum at Brown, we hope that both of our boys will be able to explore areas to which they have not had much exposure, while at the same time honing in on areas of strong interest. Through the myriad offerings at Brown such as internships, clubs and exchange programs, both on campus and off, we hope that their intellectual curiosity will thrive and that they will take risks and be willing to think out of the box. Most importantly, our desire is for them to form lifelong friendships with students, faculty and staff at Brown.
Romeo Villanueva (father)
Student: Michael Villanueva, Class of 2020
(Mark, Michael’s brother, graduated in 2015)
Concentration: Undeclared
Hometown: West Warwick, Rhode Island
What are you most looking forward to about Family Weekend?
Since I live in Rhode Island and my son commutes to school, every weekend is a Family Weekend for me. I imagine it must feel hard if you are away from your kids and you’re missing them and you want to be with them and know how they’re doing in school. But I am lucky that I can talk to my son any day, any time that I want to.
What will you do while you are here?
I’m actually working on Saturday on campus. I work for Brown as an HVAC mechanic. But I have been invited to the Filipino Alliance gathering on Sunday, so I will stop by there and eat some Filipino dishes.
What is your favorite Brown moment or memory?
As a Brown parent and a Brown employee, what I can say is that I am blessed to work in this place and to have my kids’ dreams come true to be here. I’ve been here for 20 years, and I hope to be here for 15 more.
What do you hope your son will learn during his time at Brown?
Your first year at Brown can be difficult, but I see my son working very hard. He was second in his high school class, and I tell him that if he can be second in his class, he can do anything that he wants to do as long as he keeps focused on his studies. I tell both of my sons: “A lot of kids want to be here at this University, but only a few can be. So take all the opportunities that you can get. Study really hard. Count your blessings so that you can be a blessing to others, too.”
Teresa Bonenfant (sister)
Student: Sophia Bonenfant, Class of 2016.5
Concentration: Biology
Hometown: Taunton, Massachusetts
What are you most looking forward to about Family Weekend?
I am looking forward to the football game the most. Football is one of the few things that everyone in my family enjoys, so being able to attend a game with my whole family is exciting.
What will you do while you are here?
In addition to the football game, I also plan on attending some of the a cappella concerts. They are always so fun and entertaining!
What is your favorite Brown moment or memory?
One of my favorite experiences at Brown was watching my sister walk with her graduating class last spring. She has not received her diploma yet since she is currently a second semester senior, but I was still so proud of her. I was overjoyed to watch my big sister get closer to accomplishing her goal of graduating from Brown University. Over the past four years, she has become such a strong woman because of the amazing education that she has received. My sister is truly my best friend and my role model.
What do you hope your sister will learn during her time at Brown?
Like many parents and siblings, the most important thing I want her to take away from Brown is an education. The other important thing I want her to learn are life skills that will help her succeed in everything that she puts her mind to.