University of Illinois--Urbana-Champaign
Hallmarks and Quirks
Things I'm Good At:
- Sports. They aren't my only focus, though, okay? But I do have all of the usual suspects: football, basketball, and baseball. I've always got some of the top sports teams around, even if we don't always make the finals.
- One of my major sweet spots is community service/community engagement. In fact, I was selected by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching for the foundation's 2008 community engagement classification . Basically, I emphasize gettin' out of the classroom and into the real world.
- Fine arts and performance. Our Krannert Center for the Performing Arts is truly world-class.
My Top 5 Must-Haves:
- School swag. We're big on sports here. If you aren't playing, it's time to dress up and cheer.
- Rain gear and a heavy, arctic-level winter coat. It gets ridiculously cold here.
- A small library of multilingual dictionaries. I've got students from across the globe.
- Walking shoes. My campus is spread out all over Urbana and Champaign. While you're free to ride the Illi buses, sometimes it's easier to just hoof it.
- A car. Urbana and Champaign are great and all, but Chicago, St. Louis, and Indianapolis are all a short roadtrip away. Get ready to explore.
Why You Might Have Heard of Me:
- My engineering school is always rated among the top ten in the U.S. Sure, the oysters are better in Massachusetts, but we have the best cornpone.
- The Wall Street Journal has hyped my students' post-grad earning potential. Recruiters report that people with UI degrees are third in the country for being the "…best able to succeed once hired."
- I'm the second oldest university in Illinois, but don't let that throw you. I have such a pretty face, you'd never know it.
On a regular Saturday night, you can find me...
I'm probably having a beerat Krannert if I've got some money to spare, or hanging in the student union if I'm fresh out of cash.
It's also nice making friends with someone who has a car. Urbana and Champaign usually have some fabulous, local country events to visit. You can check out such highlights as the Urbana Sweet Corn Festival, the Aldo Vineyards, or the Curtis Orchard and Pumpkin Patch. As long as you're here, you might as well see how rural folks live.
Favorite Hangouts:
- Be sure to check out Billy Barooz Bar and Grill in Champaign.
- And, of course, the area is peppered with breweries and brewpubs, including the Blind Pig and Radio Maria. Your evening plans will really depend on where is the cheapest beer at the moment, as well as where the rest of your crew is hanging.
Quirks:
- My motto is "Learning and Labor." That should give you some hint that earning a degree here isn't a luxury cruise. It's more like joining a crew team, really. You've got to work it.
- There is something of a parade on game days here, where the players and coaches will walk from First Street to the football complex two hours before the game. Fans gather to watch them and cheer.
- As the founder of the Big Ten, I am the owner of one of the largest libraries in the world. But don't underestimate my social status. My campus has one of the most thriving Greek scenes in the country. In other words, if you're big on frats and sororities, you'll be happy here.
Famous Alumni:
- Roger Ebert, late and great movie critic extraordinaire
- Dick Butkus, formerly from da Bears
- Jesse Jackson, civil rights activist
- Steve Chen, one of the founders of YouTube
- Manny Jackson, former owner of the Harlem Globetrotters. (Quite the handful, aren't they?)
- Shel Silverstein, although he was expelled due to bad grades. Oops.