I will always be the first person to tell you that I love my school. I am so grateful and proud to attend the University of Illinois.It’s a great school, academically, but there’s so much more here. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting fantastic people, being part of a great Greek system and I have had the amazing opportunity to really grow as a person. Aside from all of those great qualities, we all know U of I is a party school, but I think it’s a special kind of party school. The work hard, play hard mentality that I have seen at this school is truly unmatched and experiencing college according to that motto has taught me so much. As Unofficial 2014 approaches, we can all really reflect on the fact that you can learn a lot going to a party school.

One of the first things I observed here in my first semester of freshman year was the understanding of risk management among students on campus when they go out. We are all very aware that we are in college in order to be employed and the students here make sure to not ruin their chances of a great job after graduation with one bad night. The students here have priorities and great goals, and nothing, especially not a night out at the bars, is going to ruin that for them. That’s really commendable.

Along with risk management, students here have a great sense of time management. In order to work hard, play hard you have to get your work done. Students here have the work ethic to get classwork done in order to have fun. They will hunker down at libraries and work for hours in order to have the opportunity to go out on the weekends. That work ethic is a great skill this school inadvertently teaches its students. Time management is an essential life skill.

Above all, I have learned that the University of Illinois is populated by some really great people and the random acts of kindness that I have experienced have taught me that there are some great people in this world, and a lot of them are my peers. The echoes of concerned friends, and even strangers, about the safety of their peers on a Saturday night are heartwarming. I have helped a completely inebriated stranger more than once, because when people do play a little too hard, we all understand that the person needs help and we, as a community, should look out for their safety. This understanding not only makes me so proud to attend this university, but it has really taught me that people are good.

As Unofficial 2014 approaches, It’s time that we all reflect on how great of a school the University of Illinois is. No lecture is going to teach you risk and time management in order to live your life, or remind you of the kindness of strangers. There is so much more to this school than its academics and everything that goes on here is an opportunity to learn, whether it’s a chemistry lab or a night out.