Monday, August 31, 2009

First Day of Class


The students are back at MSU and Bozeman is all a bustle! Hundreds of students moved back to town this weekend bringing the fun student energy that tends to simmer down during the summer break. Sidewalks are covered with bikers, parks are full of Frisbee players and the porch of the Pickle Barrel seems to always have people eating ice cream on it.
Campus is super busy today with students buying books at the MSU Bookstore, registering last minute for classes and finding where their classes are. I love when school starts up again. I’ve already bumped into three friendly faces this morning in the Student Union and enjoyed swapping summertime stories with them. I miss the summer already but am happy to have our students back!

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Freshman Registration...

After seven hours and 900 new students, the final class registration for new freshmen at MSU was over. While everyone was exhausted, you could still feel the excitement in the air. Students were beginning a new chapter as college students, and seeing they joy they had heading off to buy books and enjoy their first weekend on campus, it rubbed off on all of our staff. It was a great way to end the week and an even better way to lead into the first week of classes next week! Welcome to Montana State University to all the new Bobcats!

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Freshman Orientation

Today is the second day of MSU's fall Orientation program. We had over 900 students register for this session - and there were also three full summer sessions! MSU's Orientation program is a great way to get familiar with the campus and meet other students in your major.


Orientation Leaders are current students who take a semester long training class to learn about course registration. They help students with figuring out what classes they need to take for their degree program and teach them how to use MSU's online course registration website. Becoming an Orientation Leader is a great way to get connected to the campus.







Move-In Day


Today is Move-In Day on campus. New and returning students are moving into the residence halls. Volunteers from the university and community are helping the students move their things in to their new home for the year. There is a lot of energy as over 2,000 students arrive to campus.


I remember being very excited and nervous when I moved into North Hedges my first year but I soon met lots of new friends and had a great time living in there. To the right is a picture of me moving into North Hedges my freshman year. Living in the residence halls is a great way to get connected to other students and the campus. There are a variety of housing options from Co-ed halls that have co-ed, all male, or all female floors, all female halls and an all male residence hall. Some of the floors have themes such as outdoor pursuits where students put together weekend trips doing things like hiking, snowshoeing, biking and a variety of other activities. Other themes include academic themes like nursing, business, arts and architecture and engineering where students living on the floor take a couple classes together their first semester.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Welcome back!

It is shaping up to be a pretty busy week here on campus! Tomorrow is the final orientation and move in day! Students will be packing up all of their belongings, making the trek to Bozeman and moving into their new homes for the academic year! It is fantastic to see old friends reconnecting and welcoming new students to campus.


Catapalooza also starts tomorrow and marks the official beginning of the school year! It takes place on the center of campus and is going to be a great three day event! There are various student clubs and organizations, community groups and the ski mountains represented to show off all MSU and Bozeman have to offer...there is free pizza, too!

Monday, August 24, 2009

Another weekend get away...



Despite a little rain in the forecast, I had myself a little adventure this weekend! Two of my friends and I decided that backpacking up to Hylite Lake followed by a short scurry up Hylite Peak would make a great Saturday night. So, we strapped on our packs, grabbed our dogs and hit the trail for a gorgeous 5.6 mile hike to Hylite Lake. On the way, we passed 11 waterfalls and saw splendid views of a glacially carved valley.
After we set up camp and rehydrated, we continued on another 2 miles through some snow and shale up to the highest peak in Hylite Valley. I did a little victory dance at the summit, sat on top of what felt like the world and thanked my lucky stars for Montana’s crazy mountain ranges. We woke up on Sunday to some rain so we headed out early. It rained the whole way out but we had fun getting muddy and hustling out to the trail head. My bathroom is currently covered in my still damp gear and cloths. What a blast!

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Meet Mike Ouert - MSU Admissions Representative


Name: Mike Ouert

Hometown: Great Falls, MT

Major, Minor and graduation year: Graduated with a History Teaching Degree in 2005

Favorite class at MSU: EDSD 458: Methods of Teaching Social Studies with Dr. Bryce Carpenter and History 412: History of Race and Class in America with Dr. Billy Smith

Where are you traveling: Colorado, Oregon, Maryland and Montana

What is your favorite restaurant/ coffee shop/ local store in Bozeman? I love MacKenzie River Pizza Company on Main Street in downtown Bozeman. They have a great selection of pizzas, pastas and sandwiches and is an original Bozeman based restaurant. It’s a laid back atmosphere that is very family friendly, but also very student friendly at the same time.

What advice would you give to an incoming student? Go visit the campuses you are interested in possibly attending. Actually being able to walk on a college campus and get the feeling of whether that would be a good school for you is one of the most important aspects of the college search.

What is your best/ favorite MSU memory? My favorite memory at MSU was my last semester student teaching. I actually had the opportunity to spend my last semester studying abroad in Australia for four months and had a blast. I was even able to make it back in time to walk at graduation which was an amazing experience to be done.

Describe yourself in one word. Electric

What is your favorite campus event? Any of the athletic events are great, especially football games. Seeing everyone decked out in their blue and gold on game day is one of the best things ever. GO CATS!






Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Meet Hilja Mueller- MSU Admissions Representative


Name: Hilja Mueller
Hometown: Butte, MT
Major, minor and graduation year: I graduated from MSU with a major in Sociology and a minor in Psychology in May 2006.
Favorite classes at MSU: HDFN 221: Human Nutrition and SOC 304: Social Stratification
Where are you traveling? Central and Northern California, Maryland, Minnesota, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Wyoming.

As a student, where did you live?
My first year, I lived on campus in North Hedges on an all female floor. I really enjoyed living in the residence halls and met a ton of new friends! The next year, I moved into a condo near campus and then moved into a sorority for my last two years. I had a good variety of living situations and feel that living near or on campus helped me to stay connected.

What is your favorite outdoor activity?
I enjoy floating the Madison and Jefferson rivers. It is a great way to take in the beautiful Montana scenery and get a tan!

What is your favorite band/singer?
I am a huge country music fan! Some of my favorite artists are Carrie Underwood and Keith Urban. I saw them both perform at the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse on the MSU campus.

What was your favorite freebee/discount as a student?
The Procrastinator Theater on campus is one ot the best deals around. The movies shown have already hit the regular movie theaters, but are not yet available to rent. Admission is $2 and at that price you can surely afford to procrastinate!

When you come to Bozeman be sure to...check out Main St. You will find many fantastic restaurants, shops and entertainment opportunities! My favorite eateries downtown are MacKenzie River Pizza and Aleworks. Both offer a good variety of menu options in a laid back, classy, "Bozeman-like" atmosphere. The Root and Hey Day are a couple places to check out for unique shopping experiences. The Emerson Cultural Center and Ellen Theater have various art, film and music events!

Monday, August 17, 2009

Meet Meg Somers - Admissions Representative


Name: Meg Somers

Hometown: Milwaukee, WI

Major, Minor, Graduation Year: I graduated in 2006 with a German major and a Music minor.

Favorite Class at MSU: BIOL 103- Environmental Science & Society

What areas are you visiting in 2009? North Dakota, Minnesota, Oregon, Wisconsin, Illinois, Idaho, South Dakota and Montana

What is your favorite restaurant in Bozeman? With their addictive sugar cookies, organic coffee and energizing smoothies, the Bozeman Community Food Co-Op has completely won me over. And did I mention they have live music?!? It is the perfect place to swing in to get a healthy, tasty snack or last minute meal while checking out some local musicians.

What is the one thing you would recommend to incoming students? It may sound crazy to some, but enjoy living in the Residence Halls. You will never again have so many fabulous roommates!

When you come to Bozeman be sure to…spin around and take in the 360 degrees of mountains surrounding you. The beauty of the mountains still shocks me and catches my eye even after seven years of living here.

What is your favorite outdoor activity? I love trail running in the sun, skiing in the snow and whitewater rafting in the rivers. It’s Bozeman! You can’t just pick one.

Latest attempt? Yoga. I did it for 4 days straight a while ago and was amazed at how much of a work-out it is! I am pretty good at the positions requiring acute balance but those strength poses…

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Meet Kelsy Traeger - MSU Admissions Representative




Name: Kelsy Traeger

Hometown: Sandown, New Hampshire

Major, Minor, Graduation Year: B.S. Anthropology minor in Museum Studies 2007

Favorite Class at MSU: Soc 365 Sociology of Globalization and Soc 303 Social Psychology

What areas did you visit in 2008? New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maine, Eastern and Central Washington, Northern Idaho, Minneapolis, Alaska, Western Colorado, and Montana

What areas are you visiting in 2009? New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont, Eastern Washington, Alaska, Colorado, Northern Idaho and Montana.

What is your favorite local store in Bozeman? Tart in the Emerson Cultural Center. The Emerson Cultural Center has a bunch of great little art galleries, a restaurant and offers fun classes, concerts and events. Tart has some really unique jewelry as well as fun funky art and clothing many of which are produced by local artists.

What advice would you give to an incoming student? I would advise them to get involved in at least one student organization while you are a student. Getting involved in organizations outside of the classroom gives you great opportunities to develop leadership skills, network and make some great friends. There are over 120 student organizations at MSU giving you lots of choices.

As a student, where did you live on campus? I lived on the 11th floor (the top) of North Hedges on a coed floor for my first year. It was a lot of fun and had a great variety of students from all over Montana and the country. After my first year I lived in my sorority house for three years. This was great way to get involved and the house had a great cook and lots of room to hang out and study.

When you visit Bozeman, be sure to… check out one of the three ski areas. My favorite is Bridger Bowl. It is only twenty minutes from Bozeman and has great ski runs, short lines and often lots of powder.

What was your favorite freebee/discount as a student? Bobcat football games. They are tons of fun and the stadium is always packed. A great way to spend a Saturday outside with your friends cheering on the bobcats.

Latest attempt? Knitting..I made one scarf but I’m having a little trouble on the second.