Are you in the right mindset?

Summer is coming to a close and the start of classes is just around the corner. This is the part of the year that many people visiting Loyola’s campus don’t have the chance to see.

It’s so quiet.

I enjoy walking onto campus early in the morning and strolling through the East Quad (see photo). There are days when the sky is so perfectly blue, the wind is so calm, and the chapel seems to be framed perfectly next to the Information Commons. It is peaceful and inviting.

It makes you pause, enjoy your coffee a little more, and simply appreciate the day. As you round the corner along the lake, it’s also fun to see the swimmers, who each morning make their way to Loyola Beach one after the next.

This week is our move-in week, so today was one of those last quiet mornings of summer. It’s an exciting time with students and parents descending on campus. Everything looks beautiful with mid-80 degree temps and sail boats gliding across a glass-topped Lake Michigan.

We are all excited about welcoming the Loyola Class of 2017 and we have many events planned for this time of celebration. Ironically, the Beloit Mindset List is once again out to remind us how the average 18-year-old arriving on campus may not have experienced things that many of us are very familiar with. Here are a few that standout to me this year:

• With GPS, they have never needed directions to get some place, just an address.
• Having a chat has seldom involved talking.
• Java has never been just a cup of coffee.
• Rites of passage have more to do with having their own cell phone and Skype accounts than with getting a driver’s license and car.

While I enjoy the summer mornings, it makes me all the more appreciative of the chaos of the fall semester. Seeing students’ faces light up and get excited about meeting new people and diving into classes and organizations makes me realize all the hard work of the last admission cycle was worth it; they found their “fit” in their college search. I am glad it is Loyola.