January 9, 2006

UC Families Newsletter -- A new online newsletter and resource for faculty, staff and 
students at University of California campuses who are balancing academic goals or careers 
with family life.

As with other newsletters of the Berkeley Parents Network, the life of the newsletter 
depends on people posting questions, comments, or suggestions and others responding or 
posting their own.  

Circulation: 571


Moderator: Karie Frasch
    email: moderator_ucfam@parents.berkeley.edu

          Website: http://parents.berkeley.edu/ucfamilies
          Post a Message: http://parents.berkeley.edu/post_ucfam.html


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                  Contents
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*Responses
Original post: Balancing parenting kids with care for older parents

*New postings
See moderator note below

*Recent news/media
Is your husband a worse problem than Larry Summers?
On the inflexibility of academic life 

*New members
Since 12/14/05


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*Responses 
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Original Post: Balancing parenting kids with care for older parents
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First, I want to say how thrilled I am that this newsletter resource has started.  There’s 
no other place on campuses where people can get advice or share ideas with one another 
about topics that are relevant to parents, or speak of difficulties in their department or 
with their job. And be entirely anonymous if they want to.  Thanks.

I would love to hear from other parents who are juggling the needs of elderly parents with 
day-to-day life and parenting.  Because I waited to have children until my late 30s I now 
have school-age kids and old parents at the same time.  My parents live on the east coast 
so I am forever trying to figure out when I can head out there and for how long.  And 
whether to try to get them to move closer to my family so I can play a more active role in 
their care.  But I don’t know how I could manage to spend more time than I already do!  
What kinds of situations do others work with?  What kinds of problems and solutions have 
people figured out?

- Laura


Response: balancing parents and kids
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I think this is a huge issue.  I wish I had real advice to
give.  My mother-in-law is going blind and will soon have to
move in with us, just as my son finally starts school.  Is
there any chance that your parents can join you in
California or, if you have siblings who live closer to them,
that you can work out that they are your responsibility in
the three months of the summer break?  There are certainly
no easy answers.

K.

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*New postings 
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If you have advice, comments, or feedback please post a response message: 
http://parents.berkeley.edu/post_ucfam.html

Moderator note:
Happy New Year!  We have no new postings for this first newsletter of 2006 - We’d like to 
hear from you – what are your current questions or challenges about balancing academic 
careers or goals with family life?  What topics would you like to see discussion on?  
Deciding when to have children, how to balance parenting and academic demands, working with 
young children, retirement decisions, staff issues…. 


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*Recent articles 
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 -- feel free to post comments or discussion points about any of these, or offer new ones - 
http://parents.berkeley.edu/post_ucfam.html

Is your husband a worse problem than Larry Summers? By Linda Hirshman.  Inside Higher Ed, 
12/9/05. http://insidehighered.com/views/2005/12/09/hirshman

On the inflexibility of academic life.  Blog with discussion about flexibility in academia 
compared to other positions and professions. 
http://quodshe.blogspot.com/2006/01/on-inflexibility-of-academic-life.html 


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