By Michael Ball
Valley Voices Staff Writer
Taylor Raye Daniels has been a Volunteer since birth.
"I went to my first Tennessee football game with my parents when I was 1," she said. "(They) really exposed me to it at an early age."
A junior at Red Bank High School, Taylor Raye said her father, Tim Daniels, played two years of football at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. UTK and Auburn University are at the top of her college list.
Lipman Hearne, a Chicago-based nonprofit marketing and communications firm, did a national study in 2009 on high-achieving high school seniors. Their survey of 1,264 seniors revealed a high percentage of parental involvement in college choice: 75 percent said their parents were involved in deciding where they applied; 69 percent said their parents were involved in deciding where they enrolled.
Steve Bartlett is in his 20th year as the associate director of college guidance at McCallie School. He said all families are different when it comes to the college selection process.
"It depends on the parents," he said. "Some parents are not very involved. Some parents are very hands-on. Some parents will just give financial barriers and let the student decide from there."
Rachel Brant, a senior at Ooltewah, will be enrolling at her father's alma mater, Clemson University, next fall.
"He really pushed for me to go there. I was originally leaning toward UNC-Chapel Hill, but Clemson falls more in the price range he would pay for."
Lisa Burns, associate dean of admissions for recruitment at the University of the South, said parental persuasion is not uncommon. At Sewanee, about 25 percent of the school's freshman are legacy students, she said.
"Before coming to work at (University of the South), the school I worked for had a proud alum who planted brochures of the university everywhere in order to persuade their child to attend their alma mater," said Ms. Burns, who has spent 28 years as a college counselor. "When the student got out of bed, there was a brochure for them. When the student opened the medicine cabinet, there was a brochure. When the student got in the car, there was a brochure."
Although he would love to see Taylor Raye attend his alma mater, Mr. Daniels said, he'll be OK if she doesn't follow in his footsteps.
"I don't care where she goes," he said. "She's got to do what she's got to do. My No. 1 thing is for her to be happy."
"I think my dad will support me wherever I go," Taylor Raye said. Even if she chooses orange and blue over orange and white.
"He's always supported me in everything I do," she said. "I think he could handle being a Tiger for a while."
Michael Ball is a student at Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences.
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