Michelle's Blog
Name: Michelle Schultz
Major(s): Sociology with an emphasis in Social Services and Gerontology, Minor in Pastoral Ministry
Hometown: Elmwood Park, Illinois
Extracurricular activities: Liturgical minister for University Ministry, Commuter Assistant, Commuter Student Association President, Logistics and Formation Officer for Domestic Abuse Stops Here (DASH), Student Government Association, fall Torch leader, intern at Bethany Retirement Community Social Services, assistant cross country and track coach for Trinity High School, leader of OPYA—a Dominican young adult group in Chicago, Vice President of Communications for DYA USA—a national Dominican young adult group
Hobbies/interests: I love to run cross-country, and I love to go bowling and compete
Class of: 2010
Contact Michelle with questions and comments: schumich@dom.edu
Title: A New Semester
Date: 2/1/10
This is my last semester as an undergrad and I want it to be the best! I am just going to be president of CSA and keep participating in my ministry things. My first priority will be my occupation as a student. Dominican has taught me that it’s much easier to keep your priorities in line when you are only focusing on the most important things.
I am definitely focusing on graduation. I cannot wait for the candle and rose ceremony. Also, next weekend I will be attending Dominicans first ever Kairos retreat! I am so excited for this because I went on this retreat in high school and I loved it. At a college level, I know this retreat will be a bit different and also be amazing in its own unique way. This retreat will be a great way to relax and reconnect with myself, family, friends, and God.
Title: School of Americas Protest
Date: 11/30/09
Title: Commuter Appreciation Days
Date: 11/30/09
Here is a video that I took of the recent Commuter Appreciation Days.
Title: Haunted Tours
Date: 11/6/09
Hello everyone! Last week was the largest event for my club, Commuter Student Association. Since I am president, I tried my best to stay organized and get as many people as possible to help out with the event. We did have many people offer to help us. However, it was certain that not everyone would show up. Still, with the smallest amount of people to help out that we have had in years, the Social Hall never looked better. We began setting up at 10 a.m. and decorated and set up until 6 p.m.! Everything turned out great despite our small numbers of set up crew. We also decorated the tunnel underneath Mazzuchelli Hall. This process usually takes 3-4 hours. This year it only took about 2 hours. This event last year usually hosts about 250 people. This year Haunted Tours hosted around 350 people! CSA is very proud of our hard work and very thankful to those that helped out. We appreciate all the people that helped to make this event possible. I am glad that everything went pretty smoothly. The weather was dreadful--it was pouring outside! This did not help the tours which had to go outside for some of the time. But, it did help the story telling event at 10 p.m. because the sound of the pouring rain made the creepy stories even more scary! I loved haunted tours this year and I hope to be around next year to see it happen again! Now I must get back to doing homework and other fun things. I have some projects to complete in the ministry center. Adios!
Title: Lots of work and "Senior-itis"
Date: 10/27/09
The summer just flew by! Starting classes this semester has given me that scary feeling: senior-itis. I have massive amounts of work to do and not enough time to do it. This year I am balancing three jobs: being the commuter assistant is my campus job during the day, being a cross-country coach every afternoon and weekend, and I got a job at Old Navy for nights and weekends. It has been quite crazy so far. I want to go back to summer so badly! It is nice being back at Dominican, however it has been overwhelming too. I have a great time being a part of the Student Leadership and Ministry program, president for CSA, and active member of many clubs. I also love being the commuter assistant. I just wish I didn’t have so much homework. The good part of my sociology and theology classes is that they are interesting during class. We have had some really great discussions and my interest in these topics continues to grow. I guess that I will continue to find the best ways to prioritize my time and balance work and school. Getting over senior-itis will not be easy, but it must be done. So far it has been a very fun senior year, despite my workload. I am looking forward to hopefully good grades and successful club events.
Title: Good eats around DU
Date: 9/15/09
I’ve got some great eating ideas for you! After dining out a ton this summer, I thought everyone needs to know about these great restaurants. Just find a spot to park anywhere in Downtown Oak Park (starting at the corner of Harlem and Lake Street), but watch out for parking meters—a quarter is only ten minutes for most of them! There are tons of places to eat. And there is a Parking garage off Harlem. If you are not from around here, check out these places that I recommend—only my favorites! If you turn down Lake Street, to your right is Panera, Starbucks, Quedoba and Pompei. All very delicious. To your left, there is a café in the Borders store, Chipotle (amazing burritos!) and Five Guys—hamburgers and fries to die for! Across the street from there is the Bar Louie, a very fun restaurant with a great variety of foods. They have weekly specials like half-off appetizers after midnight. They are also open late. Also Bruggers Bagels just opened right by Bar Louie. Just down the street is Coldstone Creamery, always a favorite. Just down the street by the Lake Theatre is Mancini’s restaurant, Ben and Jerry’s, Subway, and Puree’s Pizza. If you continue down Lake Street past Oak Park Avenue, you will find the best restaurant ever created by mankind—F latop Grill. And you get a discount with your student ID. There is also an Oberweiss right down the street. They have the best ice cream and are open till ten on weeknights. I am in love with their shakes.
If you would like to eat a little bit closer to Dominican, check out North Avenue. There are tons of great restaurants there. If you take Lathrop down to North Avenue, you will see an array of little places to eat. These are some of the best in the area. There is a tiny little sub shop called Alpine Subs. It is famous in the area for the best authentic subs. Then you will see Johnnies Beef, which has the best hot dogs, fries and beef sandwiches around! People go crazy for it, and for the Italian ice. (Cash only) Next to it are Spizzico and Senor Jefe, an Italian restaurant with amazing food and a Mexican restaurant with the same owner. Next to it is New Star, the best Chinese food around. Next is one of the most famous Italian restaurants in town, Trattoria Peppino. It has the best pasta. Next to it is the legendary Massa, famous for its amazing gelato, authentic Italian pizzas and sandwiches, and my favorite, the panzoratti. There are fabulous restaurants up and down this street, including Taco Burrito King, Bakers Square, Potbellys Sandwich Works, Panda Express, and a Hooters! The best pizza in Chicago is right by Harlem and North Avenue, called Old World Pizza. It is absolutely the best!
Title: Not your typical summer class
Date: 7/31/09
Hello again! After completing my internship, I completed two summer courses for credits. It is nice to have summer school, that way I did not just become a couch potato all summer. If I did not have two summer school classes, I would just lose all the good habits I try to keep up with during the school year. I took a class about human rights and globalization, which was really interesting, and I took a course about Blues music, its history, and the Civil Rights movement.
For the Blues class, we had two meetings and traveled to Mississippi where the Blues were born! This class was amazing. I am so glad that Dominican offers opportunities like this, and Dominican is the only school to offer such a class. I was able to learn about history hands on. For me, this was the best way to learn. A combination of reading, writing, and actually experiencing the history was unbelievable. I encourage everyone to take this class! We traveled up and down the Mississippi Delta and had a blast—for credit! I actually heard live blues music every night and went to all the historical places. Seeing the place where Martin Luther King spoke his last great speech and the site where he was shot, was an experience I will never forget. I will never forget following the final steps of Robert Johnson, the great Blues man and trying to figure out what really happened to him in those final hours. You just cannot have an experience like this through any other school. My professor was wonderful and taught us so much. Thank you Dr. Monti!
Title: Summer internship
Date: 6/15/09
My internship has been going pretty well. I love being a social worker, so I am really glad I have this experience to know for sure if this is what I want to do for the rest of my life. I feel more confident about my skills as a social worker, because I am already doing pretty well with everything. My days are long, but I learn something new each day. I am so glad we have these internships for credit at Dominican. I do wish it was paid, like my internship last summer, but that is very rare to find. So far I have had two internships in my field, and so far they have been successful. This gives me hope for the future. Even though I know how bad the economy is and how bad the job market is, I am hoping that I have my foot in the door with these two internships. I have been hearing that my field is in high demand, so I hope after I get my master’s degree I can find a job quickly at a senior center or a senior organization. I would even like a job similar to the one I am doing right now, being a social worker at a retirement community.
Title: Coaching
Date: 5/20/09
I have had a great start for summer so far! The weather has been great, and I have been able to train for the marathon almost everyday—and walk my dog, Trudi. She is an overweight Dachshund. She is very cute, but needs walks everyday! I have been coaching track and field at Trinity High School, my alma mater. It has been a great season. I am so proud of my girls! I could feel the spirit of Caritas et Veritas throughout our season. Sometimes it was difficult to get all the girls to show up to some of the meets, but most of our girls came to most meets and practices. Coaching was really fun this year. I am glad I was able to do it at the same time as school. I am going to coach again next year too.
This summer I am going to lead a running camp at Trinity three times a week for summer conditioning. I don’t want my girls to not run all summer long! It is throughout June and July. I hope the girls keep working hard all summer to train for fall and winter sports. Hopefully, they choose cross-country, which I am also going to coach. I am going to have so much to do my senior year! I love going to meets and helping my girls—and I love not having to run at the meets. (I just watch my girls run!) Anyways, my internship at Bethany Retirement community is going great! More about that soon!
Title: Finals week
Date: 4/26/09
Hello everyone! As you could expect, this week has been very hectic. With finals tomorrow and the rest of this week, I have way too many papers and finals hanging over my head. It’s okay to pull an all-nighter once in a while, and finals time is the only time I do that! Anyways, I had a fun week too. It was busy, but knowing that the school is almost over is comforting.
Also, Relay for Life was Friday night. I wish I could have stayed the whole time. It was a great event, and we raised the most money yet! I heard it was a great success all night. It was important for me to come at least for a little while since my aunt passed away with Cancer, and we found out my father’s cancer returned.
On a happier note, last night was Bal Dominique. This Bal was a celebration of the partnership between Trinity High School and Dominican University. They have a scholarship program and stay connected to each other. This Bal was also a big night for Dominican; our president, Donna Carroll, was awarded the Trinitarian award, a very prestigious award. Her dedication to Dominican and its mission got her this recognition. The Ball was amazing! It was also a fundraiser for Trinity High School, so that financial aid can continue to help students receive this great Dominican education. I attended Trinity and Dominican, and was invited to this Bal along with some of my other Trinity-Dominican friends by Donna Carroll to help her accept the award. It was a great night in support of education! The food was amazing and the music was so much fun!
Title: Commuter Assistant
Date: 4/17/09
I am so excited to be one of the new CA’s at Dominican under Student Involvement. That means I am one of the new “Commuter Assistants.” What’s really exciting is that I get to be a part of the SOAR (Student Orientation and Registration) programs this summer to welcome new freshman commuter students. I cannot wait to help them get involved at Dominican. Student Involvement has been great this year with getting commuters involved on campus. Since the Commuter Student Association (CSA) has not done such a great job, Student Involvement has made an effort to come up with a lot of more programs for commuters to try to get them involved. The “coffee with commuters” day has been working out great.
Some of my goals next year as the Commuter Assistant will be to help show appreciation to commuters and continue to provide interesting programs and activities for them. Staying involved and connected on campus will only benefit our commuters. Now that I was elected CSA president, I will work hard and do a much better job than was done this year. I will do my best to build bridges between our residents and commuters and come up with informative and fun activities. It is going to be a great year next year, especially for commuters! Even though I have two commuter roles on campus: CSA president and a commuter assistant position, I will continue to focus on my studies at the same time that I work with the commuter community. I have a lot to do next year, my final year as an undergrad, but it will all be worth it.
Title: Lent at Dominican
Date: 4/10/09
I really like how Dominican gets so excited over the Lenten season. The theme that University Ministry picked this year was “Metanoia.” It means a change of pace, or a conversion of the heart. They set up a bulletin board in Lewis Link to remind the whole Dominican Community of the Lenten season. They try to get the whole community involved and this really shows the effort the school makes to live out the Dominican pillars. The Sunday evening Masses this time of year will be really beautiful. The Palm Sunday Mass started in the hallway of Lewis, and we processed into the chapel listening to the choir sing. That was really meaningful and symbolic. I liked the music we sang at that mass, and the chapel looked beautiful. Since I stopped going to my old parish, I have found a new home here at Dominican’s Masses. I like being a lector, Eucharistic minister, student preacher and a sacristan. At my other church, there were tons of people to do these jobs, but now there is room for me to help. I guess I like being more involved with the Masses that I choose to participate in. Hopefully next year I can continue to keep my Sunday nights open and participate in the Masses. It has been a very different experience attending church at Dominican, but I have enjoyed it.
Title: After the Research Expo
Date: 4/3/09
This week was the Undergraduate Research and Creative Investigations Exposition held in Parmer Hall. It has been weighing on my mind for weeks. I entered a topic of one of my papers from my Theory of Health, Aging, and Society class. I was nervous because I have never done anything like this, except my middle school science fair in 7th and 8th grade. I have never "shown off" my academic research before, and it was a bit scary. I was impressed with what other students presented too. Some were class projects, or papers, and some participated in a panel, answering questions about a certain topic. At least for my presentation I knew exactly what to say. I was glad no one asked me any questions after my presentation.
Overall, I think I did rather well. It was cool to present the information I am passionate about and that I even try to learn about outside of classes. I presented about the Baby Boomer generation and how when they get older, we will most likely have to establish a rationed healthcare system. The room was filled with students, faculty, and staff. Being in the social science presentations with another person led to some great discussion about the past and the future. This presentation benefitted me because I can put this on my resume, and it has given me experience. I hope to do something like this next year too. It makes you feel kind of important, with people listening to what you have to say about an academic topic of choice. I encourage everyone to submit something next year. It’s really beneficial and exciting. You can be picked to give an oral presentation, make a poster and display it in Parmer Atrium, or you can be on a panel to answer questions. Just be sure you submit something you love to talk about, for at least 15 minutes, and a topic that you know plenty about.
Title: Research Expo
Date: 3/27/09
Now that midterms are out of the way, I can finally breathe. I still have a lot to do, but not as much as I would if I still had to worry about midterms. Next week is the Undergraduate Research and Creative Investigations Expo. I have entered in one of my paper topics from my theory of aging class, called “Health, Aging, and Society.” It is about rationed health care for the baby boomer generation, and how the idea of health care is going to change pretty soon. I find it all fascinating, and I hope I do a great job on my presentation. I am a bit nervous because I have never done anything like this before. I am also kind of excited because I have never done this before too.
The weather has been so much better lately. I love being outside around campus. It is beautiful and I can really appreciate it now that the snow is gone. The snow made everything look beautiful; however, it destroys my mood because I hate driving around in it and I hate being cold. I think Dominican also looks beautiful in the summer, and I can enjoy it more around here during the spring and summer.
I am selecting my classes for next year Monday morning already. It seems way too fast that I am going to be a senior and graduating next year. It looks like I will only have to take four classes at a time each semester. That is really new to me. I am used to taking five or six at a time.
Title: Next Year's Classes
Date: 3/20/09
Well, the process for picking out classes for next year is already beginning. How scary. For juniors, we get to preregister early for classes, so that we get the first picks to finish our majors and minors for graduation. For sociology majors, we are meeting with our advisors next week and making a plan for next year’s classes. The advisors go over all the necessary major and minor classes with you. It is scary to think that I will be picking my last classes as an undergrad at Dominican! After briefly looking at my options for classes and running them by my advisor, I think I can graduate with all my required classes for my major and minor successfully. Some classes in my minor are only offered every other year, and if I was to miss one, then I would not get to graduate with the minor. But for pastoral ministry, I think I have all of those out of the way already. And this week I narrowed my sociology concentration down to just gerontology.
I am very excited for next year. I have one more theory class, a seminar, and some theology classes for my minor, and then I am done. I cannot believe it. I hope I have a successful senior year and I hope my GPA stays the same or gets better. I have decided to apply next year for Dominican's Graduate School of Social Work. Hopefully next year I can balance my senior classes, coaching high school cross-country and track, clubs, my Dominican Young Adults group, and a job!
Title: Alternative Spring Break
Date: 3/16/09
Michelle, second from right with sledgehammer, stands with the group from
Dominican University during a Habitat for Humanity service trip.
Hello everyone! I just arrived home from the service trip Friday night. Habitat for Humanity was an amazing trip. Seriously, this was a blessing! I am so glad that Dominican offers something like this each year. I cannot express in words how much fun and how rewarding this experience was. It helped me step out of my comfort zone, and when it got challenging, the people around me helped me stay focused. I am so thankful that I was challenged like this and along the way got to do something good for others. We had a fun time in the evenings just getting to know each other and getting to know Madison, Wisconsin, pretty well. We visited another Dominican college up in Madison too—Edgewood College.
The best parts of the trip were learning about how to construct the walls of a house. We really learned a lot and got to know the guys on the work site. They took us under their wing and taught us the ropes. I hammered so many nails and carried so much wood—it was way more fun than I expected. Even when we made a mistake, and had to take apart the wall we built incorrectly, it was a great learning experience. We also learned about the family who was moving into the house we were building. It felt great to be a part of their future. I really liked using the sledgehammer. I am quite surprised that they even let me touch the sledgehammer. We felt like they trusted us, and they knew that we would follow their instructions and work hard. Overall, it was very rewarding and worth it. The work was hard, but the cause was mighty.
Title: Midterms and Spring Break
Date: 3/6/09
Hello everybody! This week has been crazy because of midterms. I am finishing a midterm today, and I still have one more once I get back from spring break. I wish they were all in one week, and for some people it works out that way. Unfortunately for me this semester, I had them all at different times, which may work to my advantage if I then get more time to study for each of them.
Anyways, I leave next week for my alternative spring break trip. An alternative spring break gives students a chance to sacrifice their spring break, or what would normally be a spring break trip/vacation, to spend spring break doing a service trip instead. The service trips offered here at Dominican all look really amazing. Last year I did the Chicago Urban Plunge. It was an amazing experience. We volunteered at a homeless shelter and actually got to socialize with some of the people and serve them dinner. We heard all kinds of stories of how these people got to be homeless. This experience was really humbling, and showed us the realities of being homeless in Chicago. The woman who ran the shelter told us that the amount of homeless in Chicago would fill soldier stadium plus leave almost 15 thousand still waiting outside the stadium. That’s a lot of people.
So this week I chose to go on Habitat for Humanity, which is an awesome service trip where we get to take apart and build houses, or do some cleaning projects to help a family have a good home. Habitat has been around for a while, and I have always wanted to try it, even in high school. This experience will benefit me greatly. It will give me a chance to help others and have fun while doing it, and help me learn some new house building skills!
Student bloggers Ceal Tobias (left) and Michelle Schultz (right) at the student counter-demonstration in support of "The Laramie Project"
Title: Hectic Week
Date: 2/27/09
Hello again! This week has been so hectic! We have been doing projects on Hurricane Katrina in two of my classes, so it has been many, many days of reading books and watching documentaries about it. However, I do feel like an expert on it almost because I have heard so much information about it now. It is so unbelievable how people were not sent food or water for days after the hurricane, while being stranded in New Orleans and other cities around the area. We have been studying how Katrina exposed the racial and class inequality that is present in this area. There are many videos on You Tube showing how badly the media skewed everything and exaggerated everything about the lootings in New Orleans. I am really grateful my teacher assigned this project. I have learned so much about Hurricane Katrina and what happened to the survivors that I would not have known otherwise.
This Sunday is our Dominican Young Adults meeting, and I am hoping for a good crowd. We are going to discuss what other Dominicans are doing around the world. Hopefully we will learn some new things and gain some insight about new things we can do too.
Our meeting is after the protest this Sunday. The Westboro Baptist Church is coming to protest “ The Laramie Project,” which is being shown this weekend. I am angry that a hateful group is coming to protest, but I am glad that we are taking a stand against them. Although, we have to have a silent protest. I am fine with that. No lawsuit for me, thanks!
Title: Summer Plans Already!
Date: 2/20/09
I just realized how busy my summer looks. I had no idea how much I planned on doing. I plan on getting some sort of temporary job, most likely babysitting. I plan on attending a summer school class, which includes a trip to the Mississippi Delta! I get to learn all about Blues and Jazz musicians, I get to see the Civil Rights Museum, and I get to sleep in a share cropper shack. This trip is going to be great for my sociology studies, and it is going to be fun, except for the bugs. Because of the trip, I cannot attend the Torch leader (leaders for new student orientation) training, so I will have to wait until fall to be a Torch leader, but I plan on doing that too! I plan on training for the marathon, so I will be running a lot.
Also, in August I plan on traveling to Portugal for the international Dominican young adults meeting of 2009! This means that my other executive board members and myself will travel to Portugal to represent the United States. This is really exciting because the United States has never gone to an international Dominican young adults meeting before. Finally we will be represented. This is the first year that the United States has been recognized as members of the international Dominican youth movement. I can’t even express how excited this makes me! We have come a long way and it has taken years for this to get off the ground and launch. I think the OPYA Chicago group we have here at Dominican is doing great and I hope to try and further its success. Now I must continue to do homework.
Title: Encounter Retreat
Date: 2/13/09
This week I was completing the finishing touches to my encounter retreat stuff. This retreat is similar to any high school retreats that you may have been on, however it is a college level retreat, and it is lots of fun! We are traveling to the Sinsinawa Mound in Wisconsin, the motherhouse of the Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters, and it is beautiful up there. I love going each year because we get to climb to the top of the mound and look down on all the beautiful scenery. It is a great place to relax and get away from all the stress that school may be causing. We always spend a little bit of time with the sisters, who are so nice and welcoming. I always look forward to this retreat because it gives me time to think and meditate. Stress is a big problem for me right now, so things like this are very much needed and important.
I am a leader for the retreat and I think it is going to go great. Me and my other leaders have put a lot of work into this, and are really looking forward to it. I hope that more and more people consider going on the retreat each year. Once someone tries it, they normally LOVE it. Honestly, I just think people need to get away from stress, which is why it is so surprising that more people do not attend each year. I never miss it! Ministry does a great job with its retreats. Also, this week I am considering submitting a report for the undergrad research projects. I would either do a project or make a presentation with a poster board, or I would write a paper with guidance from my advisor. Hopefully, I get to make a presentation.
Title: What is SGA?
Date: 2/6/09
This week has been extremely busy. I applied for a new job on campus for the 2009-2010 year, and I am still working on the bulletin board in the parking garage for Commuter Student Association. Our CSA meeting was yesterday, and it went very well. I was pleased with the attendance, and we had delicious pizza! Well, we have a new idea for the bulletin board and I am going to finish it this weekend. I cannot believe how busy I am this semester.
Anyways, this week we had an SGA meeting. I am a Junior Senator for Student Government Association. It is pretty interesting to hear all the different concerns of the students. Senators have the job of reaching out to the student body and finding out what issues they are having with Dominican, so that we can bring these issues up with the appropriate people who can fix them. I wish more people would come to the meetings, because it is really important to voice your opinion here. If students are having issues with something, maybe we can find a way to solve the problem. I do not think many students realize that their voice can be heard.
SGA is making an effort this year to get our name out there and try to hear the issues of the student body. If more people knew about us, then maybe we could help out more people. So far, I have heard a few issues and have brought them up at our open forum that SGA sponsors every year. We have a board of very important people from the university who can answer questions for any student. We had a moderately good turnout to the one we had this year. Students asked questions, and they got their answers, without any waiting. Anyone can voice their opinions to the senators, and we can bring them up at meetings. Let us know if you have any concerns or any issues!
Title: Working Out and Bowling
Date: 1/30/09
Hello again! This week has been pretty good. I have been on campus most of the time. Usually I have to stay before or after classes to finish up some work in a quiet atmosphere. Sometimes I stay after classes to just use our new weight room/workout room. I made the mistake of trying to go running outside earlier this week, and after one mile, I came right back inside. It felt like my ears were going to fall off it was so cold! So, I resorted to the machines in the workout room, and it wasn’t that bad. I liked the machines, but I do wish there were more available for us.
Also this week bowling began again for the new semester. Each semester for four Monday nights or so we are allotted two free games at a nearby bowling alley. This bowling alley is very old school; we still have to record our own score! I like this mini league because it is casual, but at the same time we still get to compete in groups of four. It’s not too competitive, but it’s not too casual. I like the fact that the school does some kind of bowling thing, since it is my favorite sport/hobby/passion, it’s my life.
Soon I will be updating our commuter student bulletin board. Right now, it looks pretty plain. I can’t wait to make it look interesting and eye-catching again. When we had our really huge Haunted Tours event around Halloween, we actually had a real artist create a scary hand-drawn picture of the girl from the exorcist. It was really creepy looking, so it made our bulletin board very eye-catching. Hopefully, my new ideas will be just as creative and interesting!
Title: New Classes and Resumes
Date: 1/22/09
This first week back at school has been so hectic! It just seems like I have 50 million things to do! So far I love my classes and my teachers. Almost all my classes are about my major, so I really need to pay attention to everything my teachers are saying. I want to learn all that I can so I am very prepared for the test I will one day take. I hope to take the test to get into the Graduate School of Social Work here at Dominican’s Priory Campus. Hopefully the test is not bad.
This week I also got help with my resume. I haven't made a resume since I was in high school. We need to go over our resume for our Junior seminars. This process is quite helpful because in the near future I think I will need a resume handy. The Career Center helped me a lot to create the perfect resume. A great big thank you to everyone down in Career Development! That's one of the many great things about Dominican—there's always a department to help you. Career Development helps with internships and resumes to name a few. It's great to know that I can get advice on that type of stuff.
I already have papers to write this week and next week. I get to write a paper on President Obama’s Inauguration. That assignment won't be too bad! It was awesome to watch that historical moment with a lot of the Dominican Community on the big screen in the social hall. We all cheered and shouted when it happened!
Title: Busy Semester Ahead
Date: 1/13/09
Hello again! Well, my break has been a mix of adjectives: fun, too short, lazy, and scary. My family has been going through a really rough time, and that has taken a toll on my stress levels. People at Dominican have showed me much support, and I've been getting thoughtful emails during the break. That support has been great. Also over the break I have been getting together with old friends, which has been cheering me up.
This break has been much needed, and I do wish it were longer. However, going back to school will be refreshing as well. Getting back into the swing of a steady schedule will be good for me. With so many club projects hanging over my head, it will be a good thing to finally finish all the plans that I have for next semester. Next semester, I plan on really stepping up my publicity game! Maybe with the combined help of other club members, we can come up with something creative for the CSA bulletin board. Also, I want to publicize the Encounter retreat coming up, for which I am a leader. Also, I have to publicize the next OPYA meetings coming up. It is going to be a busy and challenging semester.
Did I mention that I am taking six classes? The school work seems difficult right now, but I have a feeling that with a little help I can get it done. Luckily with my clubs, I am never doing the work alone. For everyone who helps me, I am very thankful.
Title: Leadership and Ministry
Date: 12/12/08
Hello everyone! For this week’s blog, I thought I would talk about the wonderful opportunities that University Ministry has given me. They have given me so many ways to be involved. This year, since I no longer have to work on Sundays, I can finally be involved with the Sunday 7:00 p.m. Masses here at DU. It’s been great so far! I read at the Masses and I am also a Eucharistic minister. The Masses are beautiful and the choir always sounds great.
Also this year, University Ministry let me start and run my own group on campus. They let me use the Ministry Center as our meeting place. They have given me guidance and supported me through the entire process. I started a Dominican Young Adults group here in Chicago. It is part of the National Dominican Young Adults Group of the United States. The group meets monthly and we try to delve deeper into the Dominican four pillars of study, prayer, community, and service. I am now a student leader, and University Ministry made it all possible.
I couldn't believe what I have accomplished this year! I started my own group on campus that I lead. My group, called OPYA, has already done a fundraiser and the International Prayer for Peace Day activity. It has been a great learning experience as well. I have learned what works, what doesn't, and how to improve in my leadership. I owe University Ministry a big thank you.
Title: Finding My Purpose
Date: 12/5/08
Here at Dominican, I finally found my purpose in life. The wonderful mentors and friends that I have met have helped to influence my final decision about what I would like to do with my life. I spent almost all of last year getting the classes done for my minor in pastoral ministry. Without the help of one of my advisors and professors, Kathy Heskin, I could not have found that I want a future in parish work possibly part time.
After changing my major like three times, I finally found, with the help of one of my professors and my current advisor, Martha Jacob, that my career will be in Social work, specifically with older people. The study of gerontology, or the study of aging, is fascinating to me, and I really want to pursue hands on work with older people. My passion has always been helping people, so I finally realized I wanted to be a social worker.
Professors Heskin and Jacob really mentored me and I am truly grateful. Now, I really love all my sociology classes! I'm so glad I found the subject that I most love to study. I had already found my favorite hobby, bowling, and my favorite pastime, shopping. Now I have found my future and it was with the help of Dominican! I am planning on going to graduate school here at Dominican as well. They have a great school of social work for graduate study that I am very excited about!
There are many more wonderful friends and mentors who have helped me along the way to find who I am and who I want to become, so thank you friends! And I encourage all who read this to trust that Dominican has the kind of environment where you can truly find who you are and where you are going!
Title: From Sports to Clubs
Date: 11/20/08
Some of my favorite experiences here at Dominican involved my time during cross country and being involved with clubs. My freshman year, I was one of the seven girls on the cross country women's team. It may have been small but many of the girls had such talent. They were truly inspiring. I had never been that good at cross country, just mediocre. However, that season I improved so much that I even astounded myself! Instead of only running about 3 miles a day like in high school, we were running 6-8 miles a day, everyday! I was not used to that at all! But after a few weeks, it slowly became a part of life, and my times began to shed more and more minutes! Soon my miles became fights for less seconds! I enjoyed myself so much that I even began to run with family members and friends outside of practices.
Being a part of a Dominican team made me realize that practice really does pay off. I sure do miss those days! If my schedule allowed, I would run again for our team. Running outside of school is fun too, don't get me wrong, but there is nothing like competing against other schools and surprising yourself with your personal best times.
The first club I got involved with was CSA, Commuter Student Association. I went into the meeting not knowing what to expect, and the people were fun and laid back. I enjoyed being a part of their discussion, and they seemed to value my input. They soon became my close friends here at Dominican.
Being a part of the club opened me up to new friends and a new sense of community here on campus. I was part of something; I belonged to something. I met many new people and was connected to residents through our events. I am glad I went to the meeting even though I was scared. Sometimes I had to step out of my comfort zone and take a chance to truly take advantage of all the great opportunities here. But I have had so much fun doing that!
Title: Meet Michelle
Date: 11/11/08
Hi, I am Michelle Schultz, a junior here at Dominican. I am a commuter; however I am here so much that I feel like a resident! I really love Dominican, and I think it is because of the helpful atmosphere and wonderful staff and people here. So far in my adult life, choosing to go to Dominican has been my best choice! I love being involved here, the people are amazing to work with, and I’m getting rewarding life experiences as well. Being an officer of three clubs can be challenging, but so far it has been worth it. I am publicity co-chair for CSA, Commuter Student Association. I am the logistics and formation officer for DASH, Domestic Abuse Stops Here. I am the leader of a brand new initiative I started this year called OPYA, a young adults group for the Chicago area. I am a junior senator for Student Government Association. Let’s just say my life is busy.
My freshman year seems so far away now! I was working a part-time job and doing clubs and cross-country here at Dominican. That was very hectic. That experience really taught me how to balance my time and priorities. Unfortunately, my schedule no longer allows me to participate on the teams here, so I continue to run on my own. Being part of a team here was a great experience; it really improved my passion for athletics. I improved so much that I won the “ most improved runner” award for the women’s cross-country team that year.
I have learned so much both inside and outside the classroom here at DU. The teachers have really helped me, and might I add gone out of their way to help me out. Without the help of my advisors, I would never have been able to find my true passions in life. The discussions and advice that was given to me have shaped my life’s direction in a meaningful way that I will never forget. I finally figured out (after changing my major three times!) that I really want to be a social worker and do parish work. So, I am majoring in sociology with concentrations in social work and gerontology, and I am minoring in pastoral ministry. Finally finding out what I want to do with my life has made me feel more confident as I do my academic work.
Being a commuter has been challenging. I noticed my freshman year that the residents developed a special kind of friendship and community. I even tried sleeping over in the dorms to become a part of this community. What I realized is that being a commuter is both beneficial and challenging. I get the relaxing quiet of home and the space from school that I need, while I somewhat feel distant from my resident friends. However, becoming involved with clubs and sports completely changed all those feelings. I feel like a part of the community just by being involved. I hang out with my resident and commuter friends all the time, and I no longer feel distant. Being in the dorms every week for fun or events has been a great experience and being able to go home afterwards has been great too! I got involved with Commuter Student Association for these reasons. I want to try and help connect any other commuter who may feel this way with the resident community!