Agent Dad
Oh my! I thought I was reading about MY daughter when I read your post. We went through the same thing - as a matter of fact the month of August there was a lot of crying and fear again about leaving. (And she is 7 hours from home) But she only called us ONCE the first 3 days that she was there because she was so busy she just didn't have time!! She loves it and is a soph. now and I know she found the right fit for her.
I new it was the right school for her, so I did say a couple of things to help her make the decision. We told her that she could always fly her home if she felt she needed to get home for a weekend (the drive is a bit much for just a weekend) We told her she could fly once to see her boyfriend if she wanted. We reminded her about the fall and Thanksgiving breaks and how often she would be home to see us and her friends.
Well, knowing that she would be able to come home whenever she wanted was enough for her NOT to need to come home. However, she drives up and down the coast now like its nothing, and she amd the boyfriend broke up so she's meeting lots of new people and growing up! (Not to mention doing great in school.)
I think that if your daughter likes the school, she'll make the adjustment. But if she's not happy there, it won't be a great experience.
Getting her there might be half the battle, but since it't not that far from home, she shouldn't have that much trouble adjusting. Heck, I'm sure she travels to softball tournaments alot further than that!
Good Luck and let me know what she decides!
bb