Congratulations Mustangs!

Congratulations everyone!

We survived the Fall semester! Finals week is over, it is time to unwind, and it is time for break. This break, I think we can all agree, is much needed! I am looking forward to homemade food and my favorite holiday, Christmas! While each of us will be spending our breaks differently, I plan on spending mine catching up on sleep and preparing for next semester. This was my first semester as a college student at SMSU, and I have learned so much already; I could not have asked for a better first semester!

I came into this semester very nervous about, well, everything! Everything was all new to me, I did not know anyone, and I was unfamiliar with campus, but by the end of my first semester all of that changed! I met and made so many new friends, my classes went well, I got a job on campus, I got involved in activities, and before I knew it, SMSU was starting to feel like home! I have enjoyed my first semester at SMSU more than I ever imagined possible!

For incoming freshmen, do not be as nervous as I was starting college. Everything will fall into place. Before you know it, college will begin to feel more and more like home. My first semester at college has been one of the best experiences ever. For students at SMSU, enjoy your break no matter how you are spending it. Good luck next semester!

Happy Holidays everyone!

Brooke Sorensen
SMSU Freshman

End of Semester!

Welcome back Mustangs!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving break filled with lots and lots of food. Now that we are all adjusting back into doing our homework and going to classes, I just want to let everyone know that we only have three weeks left in the semester! It’s crazy how fast November flew by. These last three weeks can be extremely stressful, especially with finals week coming up. I have yet to experience the “horror” of finals week, but I have received great advice from upper classmen on how to survive it.

These last two weeks before finals week are very important. The due dates for final projects are quickly approaching, the stress of studying for multiple exams is beginning to build, and the excitement to go home for a month is forming like a raging fire. Then there is finals week. The advice I have been given is to not cram all of your studying into one day. Spread out the studying based on which finals are first and which ones are last. Another piece of advice I was given is to not stay in your dorm room all day every day. Yes you need to study, but your brain needs a break at some point. Don’t mentally drain yourself. It’s okay to go out for an hour or two in the day and have some fun. And the most important piece of advice I got is to not skip your finals. I know that it seems like common sense, but people still skip the finals.

Enjoy these last three weeks of the semester and make going home your motivation to finish on a strong note. Remember, don’t get too stressed out and take time to give yourself a break from studying.

Good luck on the rest of the semester!

Bri Whitaker

SMSU Clubs & Organizations!

Hello Mustangs! 

I hope this week is going well for everyone! My name is Ivan Carrillo and I am a freshman this year; I'm originally from California, but I moved to Minneapolis, MN when I was 5 years old. I am planning on pursuing a major in psychology and a minor in sociology. I also work for the Admission Office and am a Student Ambassador. I am involved in several different clubs and organizations on campus, including: the Latino club, Enactus, Hmong Student Organization, and RHA. Clubs and student organizations are a great way to meet new people and get involved!

For the Latino club and Hmong Student Organization, we learn about their culture, as well as go on trips to other colleges or to the Twin Cities. Enactus is a club where we help small businesses grow. Also, if we ever have an idea for something we want to start, Enactus will help us get the resources we need. Resident Hall Association (RHA) is an organization for students who live on campus. This organization is set to help with issues that happen in the dorms and to provide a better experience for students who live on campus.Check out this link: https://southwestmsu.collegiatelink.net/ for more info about all the great clubs and organizations on campus!

My first two months on campus have been great! I’ve met a variety of students, staff, and faculty members. Class has been easy, but I know it’ll get much more challenging from here on out. 

Have a great rest of the week! 

Ivan Carrillo 

Thanksgiving Break!

Hi Everyone!

I hope everyone is ready for Thanksgiving break coming up! I know I’m ready for a home cooked meal and a lot of gravy. I’m sure some people won’t be going home on Thanksgiving, but I hope you can find some friends or people in Marshall to celebrate with. Even if you won’t be spending time with family over the break, be sure to relax and catch up on sleep. 

The end of the semester and finals are coming up faster than ever, so now is the time to prepare for all the tests and papers that will be due soon. Just a friendly reminder when you’re preparing for finals week to be sure to use the Writing Center and Speech Center in the library on the 5^th floor to help with any papers or presentations. You can go in to the library and make an appointment or make an appointment online under the library tab on the SMSU homepage. I recommend making an appointment sooner rather than later. That’s just my advice!

May the finals odds be ever in your favor!

Erin Nelson 

Stay in the Zone!

We are over half-way through the semester!! It’s hard to believe that we have been in school so many weeks! With that said, don’t start falling off the grid now; stay in the zone and finish the semester with a bang! That doesn’t mean to just stay indoors and study day and night. Although it is important, it is also important to have a social life and to take a break and relax! Winter sports are in session and a great way to take a break is to go to a sporting event. Check out Wheelchair Basketball, Wrestling and/or Men and Women's Basketball!

A quick tip for all new students who are in their first semester:

 **Don’t wait to do all of the end of semester projects within the last week of school. Get ahead now, that way finals week isn’t as stressful as some students can make it! 

I wish you all the best of luck in the remaining weeks of the semester!

Written to you by your very own,

Nick VonRuden

SMSU Open House Programs!

Hello Everyone!

I hope you all are having a great school year! We had a great turn out for the Mustang Days programs that were held on October 20th and 21st. Having prospective students like yourselves on campus is always a great way to spread the word about SMSU. Each student who attended was able to talk to academic departments and multiple offices on campus during the Academic & Student Services fair, listened to a Q & A session with a student panel and went on a guided tour of campus!

I personally love these open houses that we hold. I am a student ambassador so I had the privilege to not only share my experiences on the student panel, but also during the campus tour! Our next open house visit, "A Day at SMSU" is on Saturday, November 19th. You can read more about it here: 
http://www.smsu.edu/admission/?id=9748

We would love to see you on campus! To schedule a visit, go online to smsu.edu or call our office at 507-537-6286.

Go Mustangs!


Hannah Kuno

Hello Beautiful People!

I hope fall break was wonderful for everyone! I know I caught up on sleep and laundry last weekend. Well, since fall break is over, I know everyone is getting ready for their midterms to begin. If there are any freshmen out there I want to take this time to remind you that our library is amazing and the perfect place to get all of your studying done. I’m usually in the library every night for at least an hour trying to get caught up on homework and do a little studying for tests coming up. If you are an off campus student and don’t have time to get to the library at night, you can utilize the online resources our library offers like access to journals, books, articles, and videos.

P.S. professors love to see when students use different journals and articles from the library in papers and research projects, so good thing they are easy to access!

On a side note from studying, let’s talk about how exciting it is that Halloween is coming up! I hope everyone is doing their research and figuring out what sweet costumes you’re going to wear this year. Also, please decorate your dorm, apartment, or house for Halloween and get in the spooky spirit. Every week at our house we add new decorations for Halloween, so when the week arrives we will have the coolest house on the block. If you live on campus, you can also decorate your dorm lobby to get ready for when the community comes out to campus to trick or treat! Ask your RA if your dorm is participating this year in Halloween and see what fun stuff you can do to make this year even more festive.

Stay warm everyone as it gets colder, stay healthy this fall season, and remember we are fortunate to have an interconnected campus during these cold months!


Thanks for reading!

Erin Nelson, Marketing Senior at SMSU!

A Look Into the Life of a Mustang

Hey guys my name is Bri (Brianna) Whitaker and I am a freshman here at SMSU. I am an Exercise Science major and I am looking into becoming a physical therapist. I am originally from Brookings, SD which is about an hour away from Marshall. I have only been at SMSU for a little over a month, but I have to say this past month has been a great experience! The days keep flying by and its crazy to think that there are only 42 days (approximately) left in the semester!

As an incoming freshman, college can be kind of terrifying. What if I go to the wrong class? What if I sleep through my seven alarms? What if I don’t meet anyone? And the questions are never ending. Don’t worry about not meeting anyone because you will meet at least ten people within the first 2 days that you didn’t know before you moved in. The best part about move-in weekend is that there are people who willingly help carry your stuff up the stairs. There are also so many activities planned for the weekend as well and you hardly ever spend time just sitting in your room. Saying goodbye to your parents is hard, even if you have been convincing yourself you’re ready to leave, but adjusting to college life is easier than you expect.

Balancing a schedule can be both easy and difficult. You may feel swamped by the number of classes you are taking this semester, the feeling that you need to find a job, all of the different clubs and organizations you want to join, and by all of the sporting events that are taking place. You may feel like you don’t have time to do everything without feeling overwhelmed. I came to SMSU with 3 credit hours and I am currently taking 14 credit hours, I work in the Admission Office, I am an SMSU Ambassador, and I am a member of the SMSU Dance Team. At first I was so worried about how much time I would actually have to go to sporting events, hang out with new friends, and most importantly, if I was going to ever get enough sleep. But don’t worry, there are so many ways to balance a schedule and be involved at SMSU, that there will be days where you are just sitting there asking yourself so now what can I do for the next 3 hours. The stress of college seems so much worse in movies than it is in real life.

This past month at SMSU has made the transition from being around my family 24/7 to seeing them every 3 weeks so much easier. Even though I’m an hour away, I still have plan filled weekends where I simply don’t have time to go home. It is nice to see my family but it’s also nice when you have plans on the weekends with the new people you have met since move-in weekend. I have really enjoyed this last month and it’s safe to say I love being a Mustang! 

Fall Break… Coming Soon to SMSU!

Hello everyone!

I hope you all enjoyed the homecoming festivities! The first two weekends in October are an exciting time for Mustang students. Not only was last weekend Homecoming and a big football game on Saturday but this weekend is fall break! Yes, that is correct! We have a fall break! Which also means… MIDTERMS. Time is flying by this semester. It seems like last weekend, I was moving freshman into the dorms! With midterms coming up next week, don’t freak out. Just remember to study for those pesky exams and to not procrastinate. After the midterm exams, you will get four days off of school (October 8-11).

What I’ve done for fall break included going home and relaxing my brain. I mainly hung out with family and close friends. It was nice to catch up with everyone since I hadn’t been home from college for a month. I came to find out how important those individuals were to me because of how much I missed them! I didn’t do anything special but had a great time being home and away from school for the short amount of time.

Staying on campus is also an option during break. It can be a time to get ahead on homework or to hang out with classmates and a lot of people choose that option! Whatever you choose, make sure you enjoy your time off. Take advantage of the break because some state schools don’t have that privilege! College can be whatever you make of it! HAVE FUN!

Written to you by your very own,

 Nick VonRuden

SMSU Homecoming Week!

Hello Everyone!

            

It’s great to be back at SMSU again! Can you believe it’s already that time of year? It’s Homecoming Week! It seems like just last week it was Gold Rush Days! This year’s theme is Mustangs Unleashed, and it’s already proving to be popular with students. With Homecoming Week upon us, it means things are busy in the land of Mustangs!

           

Homecoming Week is an annual event where current and former Mustangs unite in honor of SMSU and its fine heritage. The festivities actually started a couple weeks ago when clubs and organizations on campus selected nominations for this year’s Homecoming ballot. Shortly after, the voting started for Freshman and Sophomore representatives, and King and Queen finalists. King and Queen will be announced on Coronation night.

            

This week has been a frenzy of other activities on campus as well. We had our annual Stampede cookout sponsored by Chartwells in the Student Center on Monday, and on Tuesday night we had the always popular Chris Jones to perform his Hypnotist show. The Hypnotist show has been a staple of Homecoming week for a while now and is a huge favorite among many students. It’s always a delight to see your fellow classmates become hypnotized and do crazy things they would never normally do.

As the week continues, events such as Coronation of the Homecoming King and Queen help round out the week. On Friday, there is a volleyball game, as well as the SMSU Foundation Gala, which is the largest fundraiser for student scholarships. It raises a lot of money from SMSU alumni to help pay it forward to new SMSU students. 

            

The activities conclude on Saturday, starting with the parade in downtown Marshall. From Homecoming royalty to SMSU clubs to local Marshall businesses, the parade is chock full of fun! The athletics start with a Girls’ Soccer game followed by the much anticipated Football game at 6. Homecoming Week truly has something for every kind of Mustang!

            

This is Aaron Bible signing off, hoping all your Mustang Dreams come true!

Brooke's First Month at SMSU!

Hey guys! My name is Brooke Sorensen, and I am a freshman at SMSU! I am originally from Minneota, Minnesota, which is about 15 miles west of Marshall. I am majoring in Communication Arts and Literature/Secondary Education. I have been at SMSU for about a month now, and I am loving it! Even though I have only been here for a short amount of time, I already feel confident that I made the right decision coming here. I am not going to lie; I was pretty nervous coming into college. But, I quickly realized that there was nothing to be nervous about.

I was very nervous about finding my way around campus, but my first weekend at SMSU made that fade quickly. I moved in on a Thursday and spent the weekend doing various activities to get accustomed to campus. There were also numerous opportunities to go on tours of the academic buildings to help me find my way around. By the time that classes started on Monday, I felt as though I was already used to the campus. Although I did get turned around at times the first couple weeks, that faded, and I now feel that I know campus well. I am also getting to know campus even better now that I am working in the Office of Admission.

Another one of my worries coming to SMSU was making friends. I came from a small town where everybody knows everybody. I had had the same friends for all of elementary school, junior high, and high school. I was very nervous about leaving them, but Gold Rush Days also changed that. There were so many activities that I could take part in that had no choice but to meet tons of new people. By the end of the weekend, I had already made lots of new friends. I have also met a lot of new people through various activities after Gold Rush Days. I found after the first week that making new friends was not something that I needed to be worried about because there are so many new people that you will meet through activities and classes, you will make lots of new friends.

My last worry, which was probably my biggest concern, was my classes and time management skills. I was very nervous about my classes when I first came in. I was unsure of what to expect in a college classroom, but I soon realized that this was not something that I needed to worry about. While the classes that I am taking are structured differently as we only meet two or three times a week, I found that I, personally, liked this better. I am taking fifteen credits this semester. I also have two jobs that add up to 20 hours a week. I was nervous that this would be too overwhelming for me and that I would struggle managing my time. While it has been an adjustment, I feel like I have adjusted to it well. I did have to stop procrastinating the way that I did in high school, but I guess that it probably a good thing!

My first month at SMSU surpassed my expectations, and I have enjoyed it a lot! I came into college being very nervous about finding my way around, making friends, and managing my time and classes. After my first month, this nervousness no longer exists. Even after my first weekend at SMSU, I found that I did not need to worry! Although I have only been here for a month, I am already confident that I made the right choice coming to SMSU. I feel at home here, and I could not ask for much more than that. I love it here, and I love being a part of the Mustang Family!

Go Mustangs!

Brooke Sorensen

Welcome Back Mustangs!

I hope that everyone is having a great week! Getting back into the swing of things is always a struggle but power through it and take every day as it comes. Make sure that you are talking to the references on campus if you have questions or concerns about anything. Remember that anyone with an “Ask Me” button can help you out with any questions you may have. 

I also hope that everyone was involved in the activities from Gold Rush Days. GRD is definitely my favorite weekend of the year! Some of my favorite events we had this year were the Johnny Holm band, Mud Volleyball and Sex Signals. I would say that I made some of my best friends during my first week on campus my freshmen year and I hope you all feel the same.

Have a great semester everyone! Study hard but also make time for some fun! :) 

Hannah Kuno
Junior, Psychology Major   

A Look Back - Lucas' SMSU Journey

Hey Everyone! 

I’m back for a second round of the SMSU blog! The opportunity to do this has given me the ability to sit back and look at my journey through SMSU and where it will take me. I am just a few short months away from walking across the stage at graduation and shaking the President’s hand with my degree in the other hand. As many have probably said before me and others will continue to say long after I’ve left, enjoy your time in college because it flies by.

Freshman year I arrived on campus wide eyed and scared if I made the right life choice. I was quick to find out it was. From walking into Sweetland Hall to my RA’s smile from ear to ear and the excitement in her voice that this was going to be the best time of your life, to later meeting my roommate where we had enough in common to keep things interesting but different enough to balance each other. Little did I know these among others would be lifelong relationships in the making.

Through the middle years of college it was all about finding what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. This was something I spend sleepless nights thinking about, but over time you find your strengths and passions in life. So if you think you’re the only one in that boat, look around there are other rowing right along with you. Don’t give up! Keep pushing forward and it will find you. Personally, I switched a few times before finally settling into Sports Management, which keeps opening doors that I would have never thought would have been possible.

Senior year was here before long and then I blinked and it’s half way over. At the start I made an effort to live every experience that I haven’t yet to this point. Meet as many people as I could and make those memories where 20 years down the line we’ll look back and say “Remember that one time?” The real world is right around the corner, am I nervous? Who wouldn’t be? Life is about to really start and I’m about to put to work everything I have learned since I started Kindergarten. I can honestly say that it’s an excited nervousness, because it’s a new fresh chapter in my life.

Coming to Southwest was one of the most difficult disc ions I had made in my life to that point. Over time I could slowly see it was the right choice. Through the course of my four years here I really found out who I was and what I was capable of. I found out that you don’t have to do it all by yourself because at the end of the day we are all a family.  I learned what it’s like to be a part of tradition that is invested in its students and the future. Most importantly, I learned what it means to be a Mustang.

Once a Mustang, Always a Mustang!

Lucas

Nya's Making a Difference!

Winter break was great but now it’s time to get back in gear and finish out second semester. I started out my semester with what I enjoy doing most: making changes and helping around campus on my MSUSA campus organizing committee.

 We started out the year by helping out at the Martin Luther King Day of Service and Breakfast on January 18th. The MLK event included breakfast, speakers, and showings throughout the week. There were events for both SMSU students and the Marshall community. Along with the latter, the committee members and I got students to sign up to volunteer and informed them about legislative action alerts. At one session we were able to register 63 students! 

 

 

Following the MLK breakfast we helped an organization called Food4Kids.  Food4Kids helps out children in the community by providing meals for them. In under an hour we were able to pack 400 bags of food. This semester has started off great and I intend to keep moving forward.  It feels great to not only help out on campus but also around the community. Until next time, have a great semester, and GO MUSTANGS!