Brooke Shields Jokes She'll 'Move on Campus' to Cope with Daughter Rowan Being Away at College

Angela Andaloro
·2 min read
Brooke Shields Shares Then-and-Now Photos with on National Daughters Day: 'My Whole Heart'
Brooke Shields Shares Then-and-Now Photos with on National Daughters Day: 'My Whole Heart'
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Brooke Shields/Instagram

Brooke Shields is finding ways to cope while daughter Rowan is away at college.

Speaking with Today during the Forbes Power Women's Summit in New York City, the actress and model shared her ideas for dealing with her 19-year-old being away at school for her sophomore year.

Joking that she'll "just move on campus, just buy an apartment next door," after a difficult goodbye this fall, Sheilds noted that the milestone can be "sad for moms," but "also a moment of pride."

"You know that you're their mom, they're your baby, and that's never going to change."

Shields is also mom to daughter Grier, 16, sharing both girls with husband Chris Henchy.

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Brooke Shields Shares Then-and-Now Photos with on National Daughters Day: 'My Whole Heart'
Brooke Shields Shares Then-and-Now Photos with on National Daughters Day: 'My Whole Heart'

Brooke Shields/Instagram

RELATED: Brooke Shields Says She Was Mom's 'World,' Wants Her Girls to Know She's 'Not Their Responsibility'

Last month, the Suddenly Susan star shared a tearful video on Instagram noting how despite expecting it to be easier than dropping Rowan off at her dorm freshman year, Shields found that waving goodbye at home was just as tough.

"So I just waved my daughter goodbye again and I thought it would be easier the second time. She's already been away and been with me all summer, but... I'm not making the drive with her, she's driving with her dad," Shields shared. "But she's taking my car, which was my car as my graduation present car, so she's going to be driving that."

Brooke Shields and Chris Henchy pose with guests at the screening of "Impractical Jokers: The Movie" at AMC Lincoln Square Theater on February 18, 2020 in New York City
Brooke Shields and Chris Henchy pose with guests at the screening of "Impractical Jokers: The Movie" at AMC Lincoln Square Theater on February 18, 2020 in New York City

Jamie McCarthy/Getty

Explaining why she didn't go along for the ride, Shields said, "It was just too painful, I don't think I could go through the driving away from campus again. So if there's anyone else going through this, we're all in it together."

Elsewhere in her interview with Today, Shields shared the advice she wants her daughters to know as they come into their own.

"Make the most out of every single chapter, because they're all unique for something different," Shields said. "Don't rush it, enjoy it — and don't try to be anybody else other than who you are.

"It's hard to find out who that is," she continued. "Listen to yourself."