According to divorce attorneys, the end of summer is a common time to start thinking about filing for a divorce. However, summer’s end is also a time for parents who have recently finalized a divorce to think about how it affects their children going off to school. Many parents choose to go through the meat of the divorce process during the summer, so that kids have time to adjust without also needing to deal with schoolwork. However, now that they are returning to their normal routine, parents need to be aware of what information the school needs, and they need to watch out for signs that their children may not be adjusting well now that they are back in school.

Information the School Needs

The divorce decree is going to generate a large amount of information and legal requirements, and children’s schools are going to need to be informed about some of those changes. For instance, schools are liable for the well-being of their students, so it is important to inform the school about which parent has custody, and which parent is allowed to pick up the kids. This is especially important in situations involving abuse, where there may be an order of protection in place. Similarly, parents should also inform schools about which parents have a right to request information about the children and who may attend parent teacher conferences, since non-custodial parents may still retain these rights.

Divorce can be a difficult process that affects many different parts of a person's life. The added stress can manifest itself in a variety of ways, such as adverse health effects if people going through a divorce are not careful. One study from the University of Arizona found that people in the midst of a divorce are prone to poor sleep, which may cause high blood pressure. Other experts have also noted other possible health issues, largely stemming from people's failure to take care of their bodies during the stressful event. This means that divorcing spouses need to be extra careful to maintain their healthy eating habits and ensure that they get regular exercise.

Physical Health Effects

People undergoing a divorce can experience a wide array of potential health problems. The University of Arizona study analyzed over a hundred people several months after their divorce. The study found that sleep disruptions in the time immediately following the divorce were normal, but if they persisted, the disruptions correlated with high blood pressure. This means that divorcees who still experience sleep issues several months after the divorce may want to consult a physician.

Illinois is in the middle of passing a new law that would criminalize a recent Internet trend. Senate Bill 2694 punishes people for “posting private material,” which in this case means the posting of sexually explicit photos or videos online without the person’s consent. The goal of this bill is to halt the use of “revenge porn,” a cyberbullying tactic where people post private pictures of their exes after a divorce or breakup as a means of getting revenge. If the bill passes into law, Illinois would join many other states, including California, Wisconsin, and Utah, in legislating against these sorts of invasions of privacy following the end of a relationship.

SB 2694

SB 2694 makes it a class four felony to post sexually explicit photographs, videos, or digital images of a person online without their consent. This means that such a posting could come with steep penalties of up to a $25,000 fine, along with a three-year prison sentence. However, those are the maximums allowed by law. The judge has the discretion to order lower sentences depending on the circumstances of the offense. The bill also creates a crime for the operators of websites that host these sorts of images. Specifically, it is now a crime to charge a fee for the removal of any offending picture.

The gender gap in education has been reversed. In recent years, women have outpaced men in earning college degrees and in graduate school enrollment. Some sociologists have noted this could be a potential problem for marriages in the future since old data showed marriages in which the wife’s education surpassed the husband’s were more prone to end in a divorce.

However, a new study being published in the American Sociological Review reveals that those concerns may be overblown. The study, performed by researchers at the University of Wisconsin at Madison and Northwestern University, examined marital success rates over the last 50 years and correlated them to the education levels of the spouses.

What the Study Found 

One decision several people make after getting a divorce is returning to college. This can be a beneficial way to get a fresh start in life. It can also be a good step to entering or reentering the workforce for spouses who opted to stay home and care for the children rather than working outside the home.

Returning to college after taking some time off has both benefits and challenges associated with it for the non-traditional student. Going to college is always a big decision, but that is especially true for those returning to college, so recently divorced potential students should consider their options carefully.

Benefits of Returning to College