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Parents and Families of Current Students

Why Purpose Is Important

In fall of 2018, Bates College and Gallup embarked on a study to measure the extent to which college graduates seek purpose in their work and identify the college experiences that align with finding purpose in work after graduation. 80 percent, or four out of five college graduates, affirm the importance of finding purpose in their work, but less than 50 percent say they succeed in finding purposeful work. Here at West Virginia University, we want to change that number for our students. We want to help your student find meaningful experiences, opportunities and work both during their time in college and beyond.

Benefits

The Purpose Center can help your student in a variety of ways:

Helps your students connect to WVU resources all in one place.
Helps your students on their journey toward a meaningful career.
Helps students build essential skills such as effective communication, conflict resolution, resilience, and self-awareness.

Why CliftonStrengths®?

CliftonStrengths® is an assessment tool based in positive psychology research that identifies your natural patterns of thoughts, feelings and behaviors. Identifying the things we’re naturally good at can lead to increased self-awareness and a better understanding of how we approach things like problem-solving and communication.

WVU sees CliftonStrengths® as a tool on the journey for purpose. Knowing your strengths can help you build more self-awareness and put effective strategies in place to build stronger essential skills and show up for yourself and others in more effective ways. Purpose is your why, strengths can be part of the how. Research shows that students who use their strengths every day are much more likely to thrive in their wellbeing.

Incoming students will take their strengths assessment through the New Student Orientation portal and will learn more about their strengths with a coach in-person on their orientation day. They will see more strengths-based content in their classroom, student life, and organizations throughout their time in college.

Beginning in Summer of 2023 at New Student Orientation, parents and families receive a custom CliftonStrengths® for students book with a code in the back to take their own strengths assessment if they’d like and read more about all 34 strengths. Once you’ve completed your assessment, you will have the opportunity to learn more about your strengths through one-on-one coaching sessions or virtual strengths workshops for parents. Parents and families also have the opportunity to learn more about their strengths at Fall Family Weekend.

Strength Coaching Sessions

We want to help you better understand your strengths and how they interact with the strengths of your student! If you’ve taken your strengths assessment through WVU or through your workplace and would like to dig deeper into your strengths, you can request a one-on-one coaching session with a Gallup Certified Strengths Coach at the WVU Purpose Center.

Individual Coaching Sessions

Workshops for Parents

Strengths 101 for Parents

Parents 60 minutes

You’ve taken your strengths assessment, now what? Join us for Strengths 101—a workshop that will help you better understand your top five strengths, how they show up for you and how to leverage them in different spaces. If you know the top five strengths of your student, this workshop can also help you better understand their strengths too! Haven’t taken your strengths assessment? Email the Purpose Center for a discount code to take yours today: purpose@mail.wvu.edu

Strengths Spotting for Parents and Families

Parents 60 minutes

For parents with younger students to help them use strengths-based language and strategies at home when a student has not yet taken the strengths assessment. Help your student build confidence, hope, social and emotional learning skills and self-efficacy.

Understanding the Strengths of Your Student

Parents 60 minutes

Explore how your strengths might be similar or different from your student. Knowing more about how your student approaches problem-solving, communication, and conflict resolution to have more impactful conversations and ask better questions.

Dr. Allison Swan Dagen

Canonsburg, PA Mom of three (including a WVU sophomore) and Assistant Provost for Graduate Academic Affairs

Top 5 Strengths

Achiever®, Discipline®, Consistency®, Relator®, Significance®

Strengths are important for our kids because simply-put, self-awareness is the best gift anyone can possess. Understanding what comes naturally and defining that through a tool like Strengths – be it the four big domains or the 34 Strengths - is empowering. This information can set one up for life – and provide a focus and purpose. In many ways, awareness of and applying an individual’s strengths provides a roadmap of effort. If you, as a college student, can understand what comes naturally, you should lean into that, as these areas are “easier” or require a lighter lift. Also, being aware of what doesn’t come naturally or isn’t as “easy” may be a place where intentionality and some heavy lifting come into play. Knowing where to expend that time and effort is self-awareness at its finest.