Well folks, I am sad to announce that I will be leaving the Office of Admissions.  It has been almost 2 years since I started this amazing journey in the admissions realm.  I have enjoyed being an admission counselor more than I had imagined and feel absolutely fortunate to have had this opportunity in my life.  I have met some pretty amazing students that have inspired me to keep on in the higher education field.  For this reason, I am still staying at The University of Iowa but will now be working in the Center for Diversity & Enrichment as a Multicultural Coordinator!

I am excited to begin my new journey working with current undergraduate students.  However, I am sad to be leaving my co-workers. 🙁  But, they better be sure to schedule lunch dates with me and still invite me to fun events!  🙂

This is my last blog…it has been fun giving you a small piece about the admissions realm and hope that you all have enjoyed my posts!

I will leave you with some fun things to do when you get to campus, because for you this would be YOUR new beginnings!

Things you must do on campus (according to me)

1. Attend a football game (I never did as an undergraduate & missed out on student ticket pricing!)
2. Go to the homecoming parade
3. Join a sorority or fraternity (I joined mine and have never regretted it)
4. Visit the cultural houses
5. Eat at Z’Mariks in downtown Iowa City (my favorite noodle cafe)
6. Get a hot chocolate at the Jave House and study there
7. Attend a Broadway play or musical
8. Join Dance Marathon
9. Study Abroad at some point in your college years
10. Stay in Iowa City for a summer
11. Actually learn the fight song (I didn’t learn it until I started working here…oooopppsssiiii)
12. Eat lunch on the pentacrest lawn
13. Find the underground tunnel that connects Burge & Daum
14. Attend a comedian act put on by CAB
15. Apply to be an RA, Orientation Advisor, Tutor or On Iowa! peer leader

Wow!  It has been extremely busy in the Admission Visitor’s Center!  I kicked off my spring 2011 travel with my trip down to Atlanta, Georgia.  I met some great families and hope that they will consider Iowa when looking at schools in the coming year!  I then made my way down to San Antonio, Texas for the College Board – “Preparate 2011” conference.  It was a nice change of pace to be in warm weather and engaging in some great discussions.  Once I came back from Texas I made my way east to Chicago!

It has been a big transition traveling Chicago for the past 2 weeks!  I am a born and raised Iowa girl and boy, is the traffic in Chicago way different!  I got stuff downtown a couple of times with no signal for my GPS and thought I would end up in Indiana, but I finally got my signal and got back on track.  I have met some talented students and am excited that they are attending Iowa and/or considering applying next year.

I have about 3 more trips to make.  This week I will be in Oskaloosa and Iowa City, IA followed by another trip to Chicago.  On April 8th I will make a visit to Durant, Wilton and Muscatine High Schools!  Be on the look out eastern Iowa!  The week of April 13th I will make my final trip to Chicago…again!

What places will you travel in the future?

I would like to say that when I was a student at The University of Iowa, they NEVER canceled classes.  Now that I am not a student, they canceled classes yesterday and the night before, so I know that the weather was going to be HORRIBLE!  When I drove home Tuesday evening, it took me 45 minutes to get home.  I usually can take the interstate and make it home in 20 minutes.  This time, I did not risk taking the interstate and took the “Coralville Strip” which connects Iowa City with my town, Tiffin.

The wind was howling and so strong that snow actually blew into my fireplace!  When I woke up on Wednesday morning, there was about a foot of snow in my parking lot, not plowed and reports of interstate and hwy travel were not advised.  Great, I was snowed in.  So, I got a snow day from work.  It was NOT fun.  I think at about 3pm they finally plowed my lot and I attempted to head out to get milk.  The main roads were cleared off except for the side road, I almost got stuck turning a corner!

When I reached campus this morning, I was SHOCKED to see the mounds of snow piles.  The roads had snow piles in the center, acting like a median.  There was not place to put this much snow except there.  Campus is like a wonderland, but I do not want to be Alice.  I hate the snow and the cold.  In the end, I have survived and will live here for a while longer.

I am anxiously awaiting spring!

I would first like to dedicate this blog to my co-worker, Annabelle Hullana, she was the inspiration for this topic.  🙂

This time of year, there are many many germs making their way into the air.  People don’t cover their noses and mouths when they sneeze or cough.  Or, they don’t wash their hands or sanitize after they do over their mouths and noses.  Well, you get the picture, there are germs.  I recently was exposed to many germs from my 7 nieces and nephews during my time off for the holiday.

You can actually get better at Iowa!  Yes, that’s right, Iowa has many ways to help you get better when you are sick.  For starters, we have Student Health which is located on the west side of campus at West Lawn.  Students can make appointments for all sorts of body and mental wellness.  We also have the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics which is among the top 25 hospitals in America!  You can get top care right on campus!  There is also UI Quick Care, no appointment needed!  Just stop in and get checked out.  There are various locations on campus and in the surrounding community.

So, if you happen to get sick, don’t worry, just utilize one of the great ways to get better at Iowa!

Hi all!  Just wanted to share an awesome season’s greeting from President Sally Mason and her husband Ken!  I made my snowflake, it’s awesome!

Season’s Greeting from President Sally Mason

You may be wondering what I actually DO when I’m not traveling the world aka: Iowa, Illinois and Texas.  Right now my office, Admission Visitors Center, is taking reservations for visitors, answer phone calls, writing reports, follow up with students and working on projects.

A typical day in the office is pretty busy, but today we got to take a break and eat some yummy food!  It was our holiday party today!  We were honored to have President Sally Mason attend our staff event and let us know how grateful she is with our hard work.  While I am not a big holiday person, we got to create nicknames on our name tags today and mine was “The Grinch”, I do enjoy spending fun time with my co-workers.  Oh, and did I mention FREE FOOD!!!!!!!!!

Now I’m back in my office and am resuming taking phone calls and emails.

The weather outside is frightful…yes.  I am not a huge fan of the holidays (*gasp* I know, I know) and I HATE cold weather.  I tried moving to Miami after I graduated from Iowa, but there were better opportunities in this cold state.

So, I will tell you ways that you can stay warm @ Iowa, when you get here!

1. Take a nice, relaxing dip in the 40 person hot tub in the Campus Recreation & Wellness Center
2. Play an intramural sport!  We are offering basketball, darts, indoor soccer, racquetball, wrestling, shuffleboard and many many more!!!
3. Grab a hot chocolate at one of the coffee shops downtown
4. Attend ‘Holiday Tubas’…it’s outside but if you like holiday music it will warm your soul
5. Dance.  Yes, go see the fall semester dance performance
6. Ahh…get a nice chair massage during finals week at various locations in the IMU
7. Campus Activity Board is hosting ‘Winter Chill’ where they will have cookie decorating, gingerbread making, warm flow yoga.
8. Go see T.I. in the movie Takers at the IMU
9. Do you like basketball or wrestling?  Attend a Big 10 sporting event
10. DO, RE, ME, FA, SO, LA, TI DO – hhmmm…uh, I’ll leave the singing for the FREE Opera workshop at Englert Theatre

There you have it, easy and fun ways to stay warm @ Iowa!

Around this time of year, students are wondering what residence hall they should apply for and which is truly ‘the best’ hall.  Well, I’m here to tell you some of the best kept secrets about the residence halls on campus and I will reveal which hall is actually THE BEST!

First, some tips about choosing a residence hall at Iowa:

1. This is college, do not choose a hall that your friend likes!  You are not clones, venture out and think for yourself.
2. RESEARCH, RESEARCH, RESEARCH…hey, you have already started by reading this blog!
3. Look at the amenities in each room: do you want your own bathroom, air conditioning or kitchen?
4. Learn your dimensions – we provide pictures and floor plans, but if you are a hands on learner, get out a tape measure and see what a 11×15 room actually looks like.
5. Decide what side of the river you want to be on.
6. Do you want to be on a living and learning community?  If that is most important, look and see where that LLC is located.
7. Interested in being around other Honors students?  Daum will be your option
8. If you are not so adventurous and will be rooming with someone you already know, be sure that you fill out your housing applications exactly the same and submit at the same time!
9. Narrow down your top 3 favorite residence halls and weigh your options
10. Be open to a new experience and what ever hall you end up in, you will love it!

So – what IS the BEST residence hall? The answer is: Burge!

Actually, that was my residence hall my first year and I had the best roommate and love Burge.  If you ask current students at Iowa, they will usually say the residence hall that they live in…so, essentially its where you make your home.  🙂

However, I did say I would give you some “secrets” of the residence halls and I have done a quick survey in our office and have gotten the following responses:

1. Currier – According to front desk student, “It was better than Burge” Me – “Why?” Student – “Because it’s where I lived and I wasn’t around the food all the time.”  (Burge has the dining facility on the east side of campus
2. Slater – According to recently hired admission counselor, “It was on the west side of campus and closer to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, where I had a job.”
3. Hillcrest – According to a student volunteer, “It’s where the hot male student athletes live.”  Me – “Wow.” SMH
4. Quad – According to a fellow admission counselor, “Um, hello?  That’s where I lived, so it was cool!”  Me – “Glad I didn’t live there.”  Fellow AC – “No, but for real, it really only has 2 floors so on move in day you don’t have to wait for elevators and it’s easy to move in and out.”
5. Stanley – According to a Program Assistant in our office, “I was a part of the Stanley 10, we had an amazing view from our rooms.  People would come from miles to our study lounge just to see the view, especially of the fall foliage.”
6. Rienow – According to a office manager, “I did have a great experience in another hall and had a better experience in Rienow.  I also liked being on the west side to be away from all the traffic and ‘stuff’ of the east side.”
7. Burge – According to me, “It was on the east side of campus and close to my classes.  It has a dining facility and I could go eat in my pajamas without putting on a coat in the winter.”

Be sure to check out the housing website: housing.uiowa.edu for more information!!!

I have spent the last 2 weeks in the office getting caught up with email and projects! I’m happy to say that they are all caught up to date!!!

We have our Multi-Cultural Visit Day tomorrow and we have had a great response from prospective students. We will host about 550 people on our campus for this great program! There are 2 buses coming from Chicago, buses from Iowa – Des Moines, Sioux City, Muscatine, West Liberty, Columbus Junction, Waterloo, Burlington…and many more students from throughout the state of Iowa!

I know the weather will be cold tomorrow, but I think students will have a great time exploring The University of Iowa and our stellar academic areas of interest.

Hope everyone has a safe and Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello to all!  Sorry it has been awhile since my last post, the weeks have just gone by.  Since my last post I have traveled back to the Chicagoland area and back down to Texas.  This time, I was in San Antonio.  Oh, where to begin…

I’ll begin with this comment: YOU SHOULD NEVER STAY IN A HOTEL THAT HAS GIANT SIZE COCKROACHES!!!!  Therefore, as soon as I saw my “friend” in the morning watching me put on my make-up in my San Antonio hotel; I ran out screaming, shaking and sweating.  I later learned that those cockroaches fly…well, I’m glad that my “friend” did not show me this feature.  Now, it was NOT a sketchy hotel, in fact it was a brand of hotels that is widely known, but shall remain nameless.  I switched hotels and found a better one – bug free.  San Antonio was nice and warm, it was sad to come back to 40 degree weather.

While in San Antonio, I was again exposed to GREAT Mexican food and some great art by high school students for El Dia de los Muertos (see picture below).

This week back in the office has been great getting caught up with emails and of course, my blogging.

Go Hawks!