A Graduation - Indian Summer Weekend

 

Jacob with his parents and
aunt and uncle

What a great weekend.  My favorite football team had a bye week.  Their next game, against Michigan State, is next weekend under the lights at Michigan Stadium.  This could make for a great next weekend as well.

What made this weekend so great?  Two things:  a nephews college graduation and amazing Indian Summer weather. 

On Saturday, my nephew Jacob graduated with a bachelor’s in supply chain management from Purdue Global.  As Purdue Global is an online university in the Purdue system, it was Jacob’s first time on the Purdue campus in West Lafayette, Indiana.  For the six of us that attended his graduation, it was all our first time on the Purdue campus. 

It was a great experience.  The weather was fantastic.  It was a clear, dry, beautiful fall day with temperatures in the 70s.  Being only 150 miles away, it was a day trip for us.  The campus was beautiful, the festivities were very well planned and orchestrated.  Everyone we met on campus was friendly and helpful.

Being online and military friendly by design, the graduates were all adult learners.  It was a celebration of dedication and commitment to self-improvement while working full-time with many also raising families.  Entire families made the trip from all over the US to celebrate their Purdue Global graduate’s achievement. 

I was not sure what to expect but I was blown away.  The ceremony was held in the auditorium of the Elliot Hall of Music which seat 6,000 and it was packed.  The Chancellor of Purdue Online, Dr. Frank Dooley, was an awesome and engaging emcee with a most down to earth demeanor.  The commencement speaker was a retired Navy officer and Purdue Global Alum, Kelvin Gumbs, who delivered an inspirational speech emphasizing the pride all the graduates should take in their achievement as adult learners.  Both Kelvin and Chancellor did a great job making the graduates feel part of the larger Purdue family.

Per the Purdue Global website, the number of students enrolled is approximately 32,500. In the 2021-22 academic year, they graduated 10,400 students.  This is not a small enterprise.

I was quite impressed with it all and very proud of my nephew for finishing his undergraduate degree his way. 

Afterwards, we took photos around the Purdue Campus, had a wonderful celebration dinner, and headed home.  It was a great day trip.

On Sunday, the weather was a carbon copy of Saturday.  We experienced the

Lake Michigan from
the bluff

Indian summer at home.  Being a few hours north of Purdue, the colors here were even more vibrant.  I spent the morning doing schoolwork and getting ready for what was to be a busy Monday of teaching, advising, and a Faculty Senate Meeting.  I was motivated to get things done because we planning to use our new Chicago Botanic Gardens membership in the afternoon to enjoy glories of fall.  The world class Botanic Gardens are a few miles from our house and a great place to spend a few hours or a full day.  We were not alone.  The place was packed with like-minded folks enjoying the exceptional weather and incredible views. 

Later in the evening, I had the chance to drive around town with the top down
and ended the day by gazing out on Lake Michigan at Lake Forest beach.  It was a pretty nice weekend all in all.

I had my camera in hand both days and happy to share some a few of the photos from the day.

 

 

Jacob with John Purdue

Here are some photos from the Botanical Gardens