And so it starts...

Tuesday marked the beginning of the semester, which officially represents the start of another exciting college year. Many people are getting to see familiar faces, there is excitement and optimism about the new semester and homework has not quite piled up yet (hence the excitement/optimism)! This all was wrapped up in the first day activities including Convocation, Taste of Valpo and the One People One Planet fair.

This years Opening Convocation was the 81st held here at Valparaiso University and is an exciting time to appreciate the people that have brought us this far and the possibilities that the future may hold. At Convocation, faculty and staff who have been in service at Valpo for 25, 30 and 40 years were recognized, and it amazes me (but doesn't necessarily surprise!) at the dedication and enthusiasm of the people who serve at VU. We truly do have some dedicated and wonderful people here. There was also an address by our president, Mr. Heckler, as well as an address by our student body president. Many were in attendence for this traditional opening of the academic year and I hope one day you can join in the celebration if you have not already!

Immediately following Opening Convocation was the "Taste of Valpo" where a variety of restaurants from the Valparaiso area came out to serve samples to the VU community. It was a great turnout, and who can say no to great, free food! There was even a group of guys that brought a croquet set and enjoyed a little friendly rivalry during the festivities. Following the taste was the One People One Planet fair that allows many of the student organizations and clubs the opportunity to showcase what they do and for students to see what is available to them. For new students, this is a great opportunity to not only see what is out there, but to gather more information and get on a few email lists. But make sure not to get too involved right away, you want to enjoy some free time as well!

Tuesday also marked the beginning of my semester, because I too am taking a class! While VU is a primarily undergraduate campus, we offer some exciting graduate programs. The program I have started this fall is our new Master of Science in International Economics and Finance. As a math person, I am very excited about this program and the class I am taking this fall. The class is Econometrics which has an emphasis on statistics. Math, woohoo! Another program that had peaked my interest before is our MS in International Commerce and Policy. No, not all of our programs have an international focus, but VU is working to prepare all students for the increasingly global world. Someone used the phrase "global world" the other day, and while at first I thought it redundant, the more I pondered this, the more it made sense. Even 100 years ago, our world was still very internationally segregated and traveling internationally was nowhere near what it is today. So yes, I think our world is becoming more global as goofy as that may sound.

Well that is enough rambling for today. Hopefully your weekend is great, and I leave you with this thought...

Remember, Old age is inevitable; growing up is optional.

Ryan