mission: midwest- traversing the tundra

The morning after the U of I trip, I got my rental car and headed for Wisconsin. The only part of the trip I regret is that I didn't have time to stop at all the campuses I wanted to.


On may way through the suburbs north of Chicago, I drove around the campus of Lake Forest College, which I had discovered via a Twitter #sachat contact. When I looked up their website after our initial conversation, the pictures were gorgeous, and seeing it in person, the whole area was just as nice.

One of the less old school parts of campus, and therefore, less creepy. There was a castle-looking building like at Boston University. I left promptly after seeing it. 

After crossing the border into Wisconsin, I decided to take another detour and drive through UW-Parkside's campus. I looked into their orientation position through NODA, but as most of you know, ended up ditching the NODA route to put my own creative genius to work (see Traversing the Tundra part 2). It seemed that it had only snowed in Wisconsin and stopped at the Illinois border, because just a bit north of the line, UW-Parkside's campus had plenty of snow piles. Their campus seemed pretty modern (from the parking lot), which earned it a +1 since old buildings creep me out (see aforementioned castle comment). Unfortunately, I had no time to actually meet with anyone there (or Marquette, which I drove past only from the highway and was pretty sad about), and instead continued further into the tundra.

'Sconsin! And snow!

Two campuses, a flat tire scare (Chevy Cobalts have horrible shocks, just fyi), and my entire Kanye playlist later, I made it from Chi-town to my sister's house in Manitowoc (near Green Bay) to have dinner with her family. I had a great time hanging out with my 8 year old  twin niece & nephew. They're both smart beyond their years, but my niece is such a mini version of me it's crazy. Must be the genes.

The next day, my big sis and I made the short trip to Green Bay- Go Pack Go! I met with my academic advising contact at UW-Green Bay who is excellent at what he does, super creative, and willing to take risks to try new things. All things to which I aspire in this field. We both talked about new things we're trying to implement in our offices, though of course, with a full time position, higher title, and more pull, they were on slightly different scales. It was great to meet someone in the field with these qualities and be given a personal tour of such a purposefully and intentionally designed campus. Definitely a great division of student affairs!

One of the main student affairs cluster entrances from the tunnel system connecting (almost) every part of campus so students can get around in the snow. So well-designed!

From my super enlightening visit and glimpse into the future of academic advising at UW-Green Bay, we drove to St. Norbert College a few minutes away in DePere. It's a small private liberal arts college that I likely never would have found had I not heard the Packers hold summer workouts there. (I'm not obsessed, I'm devoted.) Anyway, my contact there was away at hockey championships, so we basically just drove through, but it's right on the bay and really pretty!

Too early for Aaron :( Someday...

...and of course, it's just wrong to make a trip to Green Bay and not go to Lambeau. So we did. We got lunch (beer mac and cheese, of course) and I nearly bought out the pro shop. After careful deliberation, I limited my purchases to what would fit in the extra suitcase I brought for this exact purpose :) 

There's a space where they've held weddings at the top of that staircase... things I've actually considered.

So much more happened in Wisconsin, I feel like it warrants a second post. 

To be continued...

mission: midwest-- illinois style

The epic adventure started off in traditional Cheryl-planned-trip form with a mob of friends who haven't seen each other in a while meeting up for amazing food, and a lot of it. Part Wolfpack reunion, part high school reunion, 5-9 of us met up for dinner, drinks, brunch, snacks, and any other food-eating occasion I could cram into the weekend. Everything we ate was absolutely amazing, thanks to stellar recommendations from a fellow foodie Gator from Chi-town.

Just a sample of the ridiculously amazing food :)

When we weren't out experiencing the culinary amazingness that was Chicago, we hung out in the warmth of our host's apartment getting everyone caught up on Mad Men. The whole group agreed that the food made the weekend, and the mini-reunions and Mad Men marathon were fabulous. Makes me happy when my coordinating gets rave reviews :)

Something else that got rave reviews: the view from the Signature Lounge on the 96th floor of the John Hancock building. This picture doesn't do it justice.

Part of Mission: Midwest was my campus visit for class, and since the Loop version of DePaul was anti-outsiders taking pictures or entering the building without multiple levels of security clearance, we tried where I knew the athletic facilities were, because I had people there. Kind of. She wasn't physically present since there were women's bball conference championships the same week and she traveled with the team, but still. So, while I was still in Chicago, I dragged the boys out in the snow/sleet with me to DePaul's Lincoln Park campus. Putting my charming ways (and networking) to good use, I got us in the athletics building to peek at their gym during practice and peruse the halls on my word that I wouldn't post any pictures on the internet. Since I never go back on my word, you'll have to use your imagination for the interior, but it was pretty sweet. Mission #1: accomplished.

Entrance to the DePaul Student Center at the Lincoln Park campus, sleet & all.

After the weekend, the group split to return to the real world and I began the massive road trip part of Mission: Midwest. The first stop was University of Illinois.

I actually had multiple people to meet up with here and got to trek across almost the entire campus (in the windy coldness. +1 for puffy jacket!) The campus was beautiful, and Champaign was really cute, though in the middle of a LOT of farm. I got a tour of the union and lunch with an alum from my program who is absolutely amazing! I wandered across campus after lunch to the athletics side and met with my contact there to get a look at Big Ten sports, which was also pretty awesome.

One of my favorite architectural things on campus: the library that was mostly underground. Love it!

Before we left Champaign, my friend and I grabbed a fantastic Mexican dinner with a new friend that will hopefully be a first year in my program this fall! Tons of nice people, Great visit all around. Perfect way to start off my Midwest tour :)

the inception of mission: midwest

Back in late November/early December, I decided to put my spring break to good use, driving across the Midwest (well, Illinois and Wisconsin) making professional connections with student affairs people I’d been in touch with and visiting friends & family (& Lambeau) along the way. A class project for a campus visit and some internship potential worked their ways into the schedule before I left, too. By the time my schedule was set, Google Maps estimated I’d be spending 17.5 hrs in a car over the week of my trip, and that’s not counting the wandering I’ll be doing once I reach my destinations. People thought I was crazy for trading warm Florida weather and beaches for tundra, but I had my mind set and was Chi-town bound. Hence, the inception of Mission: Midwest.

Where I’m going, I do need roads

I’m (usually) queen of documenting life events, but for this trip, the food far upstaged everything else we did (what else is new for a Cheryl-planned trip?) and thus dominated my Facebook album & David’s group check-ins. With all the campus visits I’m doing and amazing food I’m eating, I started to think documentation via blog instead of just pictures made more sense. Henceforth, Mission: Midwest shall be blogged Doogie Howser-style (minus the old school blue screen and innocent-looking NPH). Chi-town and U of I posts are pending, but I’ll try to keep subsequent posts on a daily schedule before my memory starts slipping (hazards of old age…).