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The Grand Rapids Press

Mom and Dad may be on their way out of the dormitories at Grand Valley State University, but Dr. Laura Schlessinger doesn't plan to let up on her mothering.

The internationally syndicated talk radio host, who often calls herself "mother Laura," blasted the university during her show on Tuesday and Wednesday for consideration of relaxing its policy on dormitory visitor restrictions.

Schlessinger was responding to a Press article faxed to her by a listener ("We don't need mothering, GVSU students tell school," Oct. 27) which noted that the college's student government has asked administrators to dump the last remaining parental-style regulations on visiting hours. Relaxing current policy would allow dorm residents to have overnight visitors of the opposite sex on Friday and Saturday nights.

"Don't give your money to Grand Valley State University," Schessinger implored listeners with college-age children, then read student quotes from the article, where students stated "This is a chance to make adult decisions and face adult consequences," and "We pay to go to school. We should be able to do what we want."

Schlessinger, a licensed marriage, family and child counselor and author who offers her opinions on callers' "moral dilemmas," responded by calling the students "idiotic twits," and speculated that very few college freshmen actually pay their own tuition.

If students want to be able to do whatever they want, she snapped, they should get jobs and pay for their own education.

Matt McLogan, vice-president of university relations at Grand Valley, said "I'm under the impression that (Schlessinger) misunderstands what's happened."

McLogan did not hear Schlessinger's comments first-hand, but had heard of them.

"(The relaxed visitation policy) is a resolution of the student senate and has not been implemented by administrators," he said, and explained that a date for administrative review of the matter has not yet been determined.

Housing Director Andy Beachnau said Grand Valley's current visitation policy is "more conservative than most public colleges, and that the university will take a number of factors into consideration before loosening its rules.

"We're going to be asking, 'is this a safe thing to do, is it a secure thing to do and does it help our academic mission?'" If the answer is no, said Beachnau, "we probably won't do it. We're not going to create situations which would inhibit the environment we've got at Grand Valley."

Schlessinger, whose blunt, hard-hitting and sometimes caustic treatment of callers has been criticized by some, is heard by an estimated 20 million people. The show is heard locally on WOOD-AM 1300 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Monday through Friday, and weekends from 4 to 7 p.m. "This show is enormously popular," said WOOD's Operations Manager Rob Sanford. "This is our number one show."

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