Students’ families travel far (or don’t) this family weekend

As Trojan Family Weekend draws to a close, some students are reflecting on the time they spent with their families — or lack thereof. Due to long travel distances, complications caused by Hurricane Helene or financial difficulties, some students’ mental health was impacted by being unable to see their families this past weekend.

Trojan Family Weekend gives families the opportunity to immerse themselves in USC life. From action-packed tailgates and a football game to engaging in on-campus lectures, families see first-hand what being a USC student is all about.

One Hire A Helper study shows that four in 10 (43%) of students beginning college moved away from home in 2021. Although the study cites Californians as being among some of the least likely to go to college out-of-state, USC is among the top three universities in the United States for international student enrollment, with a fall 2023 international student population of 27.1%. With many students coming from homes thousands of miles away, not everyone’s families could be in attendance this past weekend.

León Oberto, a sophomore studying economics, is originally from Venezuela, with family members from Mexico and Spain. He said he wishes there was more that could be done to include international students in the family weekend festivities.

“This year was better because my brother was able to come, but last year, I felt a bit sh***y,” he said.

Not all students are upset that their parents couldn’t come to Trojan Family Weekend, though. Rahul Padam Mehta, a sophomore economics major, is an international student from London. He said that his brother came to visit this weekend, but his parents couldn’t make it because of distance and work.

“I can see why other people would get left out, but I didn’t find that,” Mehta said.

Some USC parents also found comfort in being able to visit their children for the weekend after they moved away from home.

“I have learned quite a lot of what’s going on here with my daughter and her studies,” said Mara Moreno, a parent who attended family weekend.

Dr. Kelly Greco, a licensed psychologist and USC Annenberg’s embedded counselor, noted that this weekend doesn’t affect all students in the same way.

“We have many students that [family weekend] doesn’t mean anything to them, and it’s just like they just want to go to the football game, or they just want to go to the library and study or they want to go see a movie,” she explained.

Many students who don’t have their families here are able to find comfort and celebration elsewhere, Greco added.

Although many students were unable to reconnect with their families over the weekend, Sophia Cerchione, a freshman from London, said she was grateful for her friends and their families taking her in.

“It made me feel a lot better because I was adopted by my friend’s parents for the weekend,” Cerchione said.

Dr. Greco also recognizes the negative emotions that arise on campus during Trojan Family Weekend. She explained that moving away from home and not feeling like you have support on a weekend like this is challenging for many.

“So when we have a loss, we have to acknowledge it and not ignore it and push it aside,” said Greco. “It can sometimes then get more stressful, but to acknowledge it, validate it, normalize it, support ourselves, and then think, ‘What else can we do to move forward?’”