Winter Furlough – Dorie L. Griggs, M.Div.

December 16, 2016January 16, 2020

Winter Furlough Notes for Citadel Parents

the-citadel-luminaries — Luminaries light a path toward 2nd Battalion December 2 after the Candlelight Service in Summerall Chapel

Winter furlough begins today for cadets at The Citadel. A time to celebrate to be sure.

Some will be thrilled with the grades their cadet achieved this semester. Others will not have fared that well and you’ll most likely have questions. The notes and links below should answer most of your questions. The links below will also bring you to the pages to find contact information for the appropriate person or department to address your questions. While this advice is manly for first year families, parents of cadets in all years may find the links helpful

If your cadet needs academic support they should see the Academic Support Center the beginning of second semester. If the grades were really not up to standard, your cadet will need to communicate with their academic adviser and possibly the Dean. This page for Academic Advising FAQs may help answer a few questions.
If you or your cadet will need to contact someone on campus, be aware the offices are closed from Dec. 22 – Jan. 2. See this press release for Winter Furlough Hours of Operation
Throughout the year if you have a question about something on campus and you aren’t sure who to talk to on campus, you can ask a few people.
- Contact the parent liaison in the Provost office. The email and phone number are listed at the bottom of this page for Parents.
- Contact an Ombudsperson
- Contact the Citadel Family Association volunteer for your cadet’s company and/or battalion
The cadets should already know where to check for their report times back to campus on the training schedule. They should also be aware of all the information, including emergency contact numbers, listed in the Winter Furlough memo from the Commandant and Regimental Memos page. A list for parents of furlough dates and procedures can be found in the memo from the Commandant’s office. The link is on the Matriculation Information page on the Office of the Commandant page.

If you’ve read this blog for a while you’ll already know this next bit of information. As I mentioned in this post from 2012, the beginning of second semester is tough for all cadets, knobs to seniors. They’ve just spent close to a month at home visiting with family and friends. Coming back to cadet life, getting up early, PT in the cold dark days of winter, is a tough reality.

For parents of knobs, if your son or daughter hasn’t questions their decision to attend The Citadel before, January and February are the months you may field that call. If you do get “the call” remind them that they are stronger than they think they are, encourage them to talk to their classmates. Once they talk to their classmates and other friends in the Corps they will realize they are not alone. It’s still tough but they will get through it. Remind them that Recognition Day is not too far off, March 17, this year.

This experience is so common the cadets have a name for it, the PG version is F’d up February. It is also tough when their friends decide for a variety of reasons not to return.

If you are a family with a student who has decided to leave The Citadel, I wish you and your student the best in their next endeavors.

My best wishes to all The Citadel cadets and families this holiday season.

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah-Chanukah, Happy New Year!!

December 23, 2013

Winter Furlough and First Year Cadets

Carolina Cadet Nutcracker and an Army Nutcracker purchased at Target. carolinacadet.com

Winter Furlough for first year Citadel cadets can bring with it a mixed bag of emotions. While they are very happy to be home and away from the 4th Class system, they also miss their fellow knobs. The friends from high school who went on to non-military colleges can’t relate to the regimented life of a cadet. The process of moving into adulthood and the life of a Citadel cadet is in place by December of knob year.

The downside of Winter Furlough is the news that comes from friends who have decided they want a different college experience and will not return to The Citadel for second semester. While I am sure it is a tough decision not to return, in some ways hearing a good buddy won’t be there second semester can really upset the most devoted knob. I bring this up in case anyone reading this thinks they are alone so they will know they are not.

Some cadets don’t return because of grades. For others, they do not return because of financial reasons. Others decide that they want to attend a non-military college. Whatever the reason, it is hard to leave good friends.

For the knobs who face second semester without a friend, returning in January can be even more difficult. The beginning of second semester is tough for many cadets of all classes. They have spent a month with friends and family, enjoying good food lots of sleep and long hot showers. They return to the cold dark barracks, early morning PT in the damp cold temperatures of the winter. Many first year cadets who haven’t questioned their sanity of choosing this type of college experience, will have their doubts in January and February.

I mention this now as a heads up to parents of first year cadets so you’ll know that if you get a call in January complaining about the school, you’ll be aware that this is normal. As I’ve written in several posts, you know your child the best. If at anytime you have concerns about them and their experience at The Citadel, call the ombudspersons office. They will keep the call confidential and hear your concerns.

How a cadet did academically first semester can be a cause for celebration or concern. Congratulations if your cadet made the Dean’s List (3.2) or Gold Stars (3.7 or higher). The school will publish a list of the cadets on each list. There will also be the announcement of the Commandant’s List and President’s List cadets sometime in January. The President’s List cadets and Gold Star recipients are recognized during the awards parade in January and are invited to a reception at the President’s home after the parade.

If your cadet did not do well first semester it can be a wake up call to reorder priorities. I’ve heard plenty of stories of cadets who didn’t do well their first semester and went on to earn Gold Stars. The academic support office and the individual academic departments can be a great help to cadets, but they must seek the assistance. The sooner they ask for help in a semester the better.

No matter how they did academically, they have made it through the toughest challenge a college freshman can go through and that is cause for celebration!

For now, enjoy your cadet and their stories.

Best wishes to everyone for a wonderful Holiday.

November 25, 2012

The Citadel: A Few Words about Christmas Break and Second Semester

Bravo Christmas2007 — Bravo Company, 2007
Facebook photo

The Citadel cadets are making their way back to campus today for the final push toward their winter furlough. I went through some old emails today and found one I had sent to the parents in Georgia when my son was a senior. A couple of paragraphs from that letter about the furlough and returning second semester still apply today. . .

“It will be hard for them to leave home to report back to school after a week at home, but Christmas Furlough will only be a few weeks off. In the few weeks leading up to the Christmas Furlough the cadets have other traditions like decorating the Barracks, “borrowing” the trees from other companies (cadets don’t steal) and singing Christmas Carols. See this link for a Christmas Carol video.

And just a heads up about second semester. . . After a month at home it is very hard, even for the most dedicated knob, to return to The Citadel. It is cold, dark, and they just had several weeks of comforts at home. If your cadet calls home and seems particularly down and questions their choice of school, this is totally normal. Encourage them to remember why they decided to attend this school and encourage them to do their best. It won’t be long before the weather gets better and they are that much closer to the biggest day in the life of a cadet, Recognition Day.”

Video: Putting up the Charlie Company Christmas tree

Christmas on campus in photos: Christmas decorations