Thank you, guys!

Thank you guys so much for visiting my blog! If you have any questions regarding anything to do with Westfield State, please feel free to comment below and let me know! I hope this helped you guys and if it did, awesome! If it didn't, let me know what else you wanna know or what I can improve on to make the process of choosing colleges easier for you.

I hope you guys are able to come on down to WSU and see it for yourself and who knows, I may just see you next year!

- Amanda

Dining Commons

Our last stop on the tour is our Dining Commons! Us students call it the DC and this is where your ID really comes in handy. When you enter as a first-year student, you have to get a 19-meal plan which means you have nineteen meals that week. After your first semester, you can choose between a nineteen, fourteen, or ten-meal plan and as a commuter student, you can either choose to pay for five-meal plan or no meal plan at all. When you get to the DC, you'll see someone at the front desk and they swipe your card. One swipe equals one meal. So if you swipe once that day but stay for three hours in the DC, what we call "DC-chilling" you can eat as much as you want during those three hours - like a buffet. A lot of people DC-chill and save their swipes for the weekend but each Sunday you start fresh.

This next part may be kind of confusing so I'll try to go over everything: When you buy your meal plan, you get $150 Sodexo bucks which is kind of like free-money from our school. You can use Sodexo at any of the other places to eat on campus: Dunks, Subway, Quixotes, the Grill, the Marketplace, Pandini's, the Garden Cafe (located in Horace Mann) and the Perch. Unfortunately, these don't roll over into the following semester but Owl Bucks does.

Now Owl Bucks is money that either you, your parents, grandparents, whomever, can put on your card. Owl Bucks is kind of like a debit card where you can put as little or as much as you like. With Owl Bucks you can use at any of the places I already listed but you can also use it for laundry, vending machines, and there are a ton of places in Westfield that accept it, too! To name a few: Domino's Pizza, Friendly's, Big Y, etc. I love Owl Bucks because if I'm ever low on money for laundry, I can simply log on and add money!

Pandini's is another eatery on campus that is actually inside the DC. Pandini's is open later than the DC, until midnight, so when the DC is closed, you can never go hungry. Pandini's has pizza, salads, and four meal deals a day. A meal deal is a meal that instead of costing money, you can actually use a meal swipe. Super convenient when you're low on cash and don't feel like eating at the DC.

After the DC is closed, the Perch becomes open as well. The Perch is right next to Pandini's, which was really confusing to me at first because there is no sign saying, "This is the Perch" so it took me about a month to find out where it was. They are open even later than Pandini's and I am in love with the Perch. 95% because it has mozzarella sticks and 5% because it's open until about 1-2am. They have wings, mozzarella sticks, burgers, hot dogs, chicken fingers, etc. If you're ever up late and are craving food, hit up the Perch. You'll most likely see me there munching on motz sticks and a smoothie at one o'clock in the morning. You may think I'm kidding...I'm not.

- Amanda

Horace Mann Administration Building

Horace Mann is one of the most important buildings we have at Westfield State. Horace Mann is where you can find the Admissions Office, Financial Aid, Student Activities, President's Office, Division of Graduate and Continuing Education, other administration, and home to Criminal Justice majors.

Again, the walk is not that bad. Since Horace Mann is further than Woodward, it is about ten to fifteen minutes so I would definitely make sure you leave enough time in your day if you need to head down there but other than that, enjoy the walk!

- Amanda

Woodward Center

Woodward Center, Horace Mann Administration Building, Juniper Park Elementary School, and Landsdowne (an off-campus, apartment-style living resident hall) are the only campus buildings that are not part of the main campus. Landesdowne is more in downtown Westfield while Woodward and Horace Mann are just a ten minute walk down the road. Juniper Park I will talk about a little later on.

Woodward Center is where the football, baseball, softball, and track field are located, along with intramural sports. Inside the building is a basketball court, volleyball court, indoor track, and a rock-climbing wall. It is also home to the second wellness center - remember the first one is in Ely. Woodward is home to the Athletic Training and Movement Science Leisure Studies Departments.

I currently have a class in Woodward since one of my general education classes is Intro to Exercise Science and I was really not excited about having to walk down to Woodward and back three times a week. What if it's snowing? What if it's cold? What if it's raining? I had already decided in my mind that it would suck, but I actually don't mind it as much as I initially thought. It's about a half-mile one way from my resident hall so walking to class and back is a mile walk, which I am totally okay with. I'm not exactly an athletic type of girl. Do I play sports? Yes. Do I like to participate? Yeah. Would I rather lay in bed reading a good book than go outside and play ball? Absolutely. I personally like the little bit of exercise it takes to walk to class every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and honestly, the walk is not bad at all.

- Amanda

Public Safety

This little house is Public Safety. Our on-campus police officers are trained with the Massachusetts State Police, which let alone makes me feel safe. Remember when I talked about ISOs in my Residential Hall post? The ISOs, Institutional Security Officers are the officers that roam the resident halls every day to make sure we're safe. So not only do we have RAs on duty every night but we also have ISOs in the resident halls and we have Mass State Police Officers on campus, as well.

We also have an EMT/EMS group on campus where you can join and night classes to become EMT certified. If you're a criminal justice major or really interested in public safety, you can join! We also have Student Security Officers who provide escorts and shuttle services. If you're ever not feeling safe walking back by yourself, call Public Safety and they will escort you.

Westfield State's campus is also covered with flood lights and low cut bushes but we also have blue lights. Blue lights are metal posts where if you push the button, Public Safety is notified and the blue light at the top of the post goes off. These are so if at any time you don't feel safe, Public Safety will come to you and assist you. We also have an Emergency Notification System which gives students updates via email, cell phone, or both with emergency information immediately. When you come for orientation, the orientation leaders will help you set up the notification system. So for example, if there was any type of emergency on campus, you would be immediately notified. I signed up my phone and email so my smart phone gets blown up with notifications whether there is a severe storm coming to when they conduct tests in case an intruder is on campus.

Being a young, female student here at WSU, I have personally never felt afraid walking around at night. If I'm coming back late from the library or a friend's dorm, I don't have a problem walking around campus by myself. Our campus is incredibly safe, which is one of the big reasons why I chose Westfield State.

- Amanda

Parenzo Hall

Next stop, Parenzo Hall. Parenzo Hall is home to the Art, Education, Liberal Studies, Political Science, and Undeclared Departments. It is also home to the Academic Achievement Center, International Programs, Mail Room, Gymnasium, Dever Auditorium, Urban Education/Minority Affairs, Peer Advising, and the Banacos Academic Center.

Dever Auditorium is where you we have a lot of our plays, hypnotist shows, comedians, and other giant meetings. The hypnotist and comedian shows are actually really awesome, I definitely suggest going to events like these, especially your first year. Grab a group of your floormates and have fun!

The Banacos Academic Center consists of the Reading and Writing Center and Disabled Student Services/Tutoring Center. If you any kind of disability, go to the Banacos Center and see what they can do for you. They can hire people to take notes for you and can help you when it's time to take tests in class. The Reading and Writing Center is so awesome because if you have an essay that you're struggling with or need someone to peer edit, they can help! They can help you with thesis statements, writing your essay, peer editing - pretty much anything and it is a great resource to use. The tutoring center is amazing, as well. It is free to you and we have tutors in every subject. They can meet with you whenever it is convenient and you have to have excelled in your class in order to be a tutor so it's not like it's a random kid who took stats only in high school - they know what they're doing!

- Amanda

Bates Hall

Bates Hall is the next academic building on our list. Bates Hall houses the English, Geography and Regional Planning, History, and Music Departments. Like Wilson, Bates also has computer labs but unlike Wilson, Bates' computer labs are 24/7. If you're up at 3am and realize you forgot to print your paper due at 8:15 or simply forgot to write it (trust me, that happens sometimes), you can head on over to Bates and write it! There are also eight sound proof music rooms that open to all students, not just music majors. For example, if your roommate plays the tuba, either really well or really badly, you can kindly suggest that they use the music room so you can take a well-deserved nap!

- Amanda

Wilson Hall

Here we have Wilson Hall! If you study Biology, Computer Science, Economics and Management, Philosophy, Physical Science, or Psychology, say hello to your new home! There are a number of computer labs in Wilson complete with one lab that has color printing. The Information Technology desk is located in Wilson so if you have any questions regarding your mywestfield account, your computer, television, wi-fi, etc. hit them up. A lot of the times you don't even really have to meet with them, just shoot them an email and they can help you through it. Wilson also has it's very own greenhouse on the side - very cool if you're into botany!

Wilson is also the only academic building that has lecture halls. I was really nervous to be in a lecture hall for a the first time. I was nervous my professor wouldn't know my name and that I would somehow get lost in the crowd and fall behind. My first experience in a lecture hall wasn't as bad as I had expected it to be. The class I took in it was awful - a math class - not because it was in a lecture hall, but because the math was way above anything I had ever done. My professor still knew my name and had a relationship with her students. The professors at WSU really do care. They make an effort to know your name and have a relationship with their students, lecture or not. Many of the professors will give out not only their emails but their cell phone and home phone numbers so it is incredibly easy to get a hold of them. I heard of one professor who actually gave out their Skype information to students in case they needed help with something. Awesome, right?! In high school, majority of the teachers already know you, sometimes before you even have a class with them. I was so scared that I wouldn't have that sort of relationship with my professors here but even today my previous professors will stop me in the hall, call me by name, and ask how I'm doing in my classes. The professors here are truly awesome, and I'm not just saying that either.  

Wilson is also home to the Commuter Cafe. If you're a commuter, you'll most likely spend most of your time in between classes here. It is open to non-commuters as well. In the cafe there are two eateries: Quixotes and the Grill. Quixotes is a Mexican-type eatery where you can get the best burritos on campus. The Grill has anything from breakfast bagels to chicken fingers and hamburgers to wraps. The hours are only on the weekdays until six since it is more for commuters' benefit but if you ever are in the mood, stop by and order something. I really like Quixotes and the Grill so anytime I have the chance, I make sure to stop by and get something. The food is really good!

- Amanda

Mod Hall

Mod Hall is the next stop on our tour! Mod Hall is an academic building that is home to the Foreign Languages, Sociology, Social Work, Ethnic and Gender Studies, and Nursing Departments. It is also home to the Honors Program. I am a Women and Gender Studies minor after taking two Ethnic and Gender Studies (EGST) courses and I am in love with this department.

I took my first Women and Gender Studies class my first semester of my first-year and I loved it. We discussed the history of women and all women have gone through to get where we are today. We also talked about women in society today and how much more we have to go until we are seen as man's equal. I had always associated the word "feminist" as being something negative; a woman who hates men and is all for bra-burning and not shaving their legs (two things I need in my life: a good bra and smooth legs, sorry). But I realized that isn't what being a feminist is about. To be a feminist means to "advocate social, political, legal, and economic rights for women equal to those of men." Taking this class really made me think about who I am not only as an individual but as a woman of today's society as well. It made me view myself and my fellow women differently and I gained a whole new respect for all of the women who were able to fight for us to have the rights we have today. In no way do I hate men or am about to go burn my bra, but I am so glad I took that class because it changed my life.

If there are any questions you have regarding Ethnic and Gender Studies, click here. If you have questions regarding Foreign Languages, click here. Questions regarding Sociology, click here; questions regarding Social Work, click here; and lastly, any questions regarding Nursing, click here.

- Amanda

New Hall and The Marketplace

Next to Courtney is New Hall. New Hall is another residence hall but houses upperclassmen. It is another hall with apartment style living, much like the Apartment Complex. If you ever live in New Hall, you can choose to live in either a four or six person apartment, complete with your own bathroom, kitchen, and living area. One of the best things about New Hall is that it is air-conditioned! Yay! Like the other resident halls, there is a common room on the first floor, vending machines, laundry room, and common rooms on each floor!

The second best thing about New Hall is The Marketplace. The Marketplace was just finished this semester so it is brand new! It resembles a rest stop almost. There are a multitude of different snacks you can buy if you're up late at night and need something to snack on, or are running to class and need an energy bar! There's milk, cereal, laundry detergent, gum, chips, ice cream (Ben and Jerry's to be exact), coffee, microwaveable meals, and pre-made (daily) sandwiches, salads, and parfaits! Besides the full-service Dunks, the Marketplace is the best thing to ever happen to campus. It's open really late and has everything you need. Sometimes, I don't even have to go to the grocery store because there is so much that I could buy by going next door.

- Amanda

Courtney Hall

Next up is Courtney Hall - where I live! Courtney is for sophomores, juniors, and some seniors. It is co-ed by floor so each door is boy-girl-boy-girl, etc. It's a pretty normal set-up with one main hallway and two hallways at the end - sort of like an "E" shape. It has everything the other halls have; kitchen, common room, game room, vending machines, laundry room, and study rooms in each section. The thing that sets Courtney apart from other halls is that there is a fifth floor that is one giant study room. There are a ton of chairs, tables, and couches. It's open for anybody to use and is the thing I love most about living in Courtney. Sometimes my friends and I will go up there and spend hours doing homework together and there is so much space to spread out and move about.

- Amanda

Lammers Hall

The last first-year resident hall we are going to tour is Lammers Hall. Now, like Scanlon, Lammers is a little more than a typical resident hall. Lammers is home to not only first-year honors students, but also other upperclassmen as well. As a first year student, this is strictly honors housing, but if you are an upperclassman, you don't necessarily have to be an honors student to live here. Many Movement Science majors also live here as well, including exchange students. Remember when we talked about Quiet Living? Lammers is always Quiet Living. So if you fit any of the previous requirements or just really want to live in a quiet hall, pick Lammers. If you get placed in Lammers and it wasn't your number one choice, don't worry. Just because it is Quiet Living, doesn't mean you can't make some noise. You can still have friends over and listen to your music, it just can't exceed the door. The layout for each section is a little different too. There are "towers" like Dickinson and Davis but instead of each tower being a small hallway, it looks more like a picture frame. The kitchen and common room is in the middle with bedrooms and bathrooms surrounding it.

Lammers is also home to not only our school's Counseling Center but to Career Services, too. If you are ever dealing with something and need to seek advice, talk to someone at our Counseling Center. The psychologists are licensed psychologists - not psychology students so they know what they're doing and how to deal with certain things that may be out of our control.

If you ever need help writing a resume, looking for after-graduation jobs or internships, or even want to do a mock-interview, head over to Career Services! They're awesome at helping you prepare for life after graduation, as parents like to call it, the "real world".

- Amanda

University Hall

University Hall, or UHall, is the newest addition to our campus. It was built last year and over the summer and is for sophomores, juniors, and some seniors. Instead of being apartment style living, it is suite style living. They're pretty much the same thing except for the fact that living in a suite, you don't have a kitchen, whereas apartment living you do. There is a kitchen on every floor, though. There is a lounge and kitchen on each floor, and a very large common room on the first floor! The hall is also air-conditioned and since it's brand new, it is beautiful!! All of the resident halls on campus are really nice and trust me, I've seen resident halls when I was touring colleges that were awful and ours are amazing in comparison. But I won't lie, I'm jealous of people living in UHall. I cannot wait to live there!

- Amanda

Juniper Park Elementary School

Juniper Park Elementary School (or as us students call it, JPark) is owned by Westfield State but it is leased to the city. It holds grades kindergarten through third grade but is used for not only extra classrooms, but also for Education majors. If you choose to be an Education major, you will most likely have to complete your observation hours in JPark.

- Amanda

Dickinson and Davis Hall

Right next to the Apartment Complex is Dickinson Hall. Dickinson and Davis Hall are exactly the same. If somebody blindfolded you and placed you in either building, you wouldn't know which one you were in. Dickinson is on one side of campus while Davis is on the exact opposite side and both are first-year resident halls. Instead of the halls being separated by floor, the are separated by towers so to get from one tower to the next, you have to either cross through your designated gender bathrooms or go down to the first floor to get to the next tower. I will admit, it is kind of a pain sometimes, but it isn't that bad. Both halls have common rooms on the first floor with couches, chairs, a giant television, gaming system, kitchen with dining area, vending machines, and a pool table. Also, in each tower, there is a small study room! Perfect for those nights where you need to stay up late and get work done or hang out with friends!

- Amanda

Apartment Complex

The Apartment Complex is the next stop on our tour! The Apartment Complex is for upperclassmen, meaning juniors and seniors, and it is one of two resident halls with apartment style living on campus. There are three buildings in the complex: Welch Hall, Seymour Hall, and Conlin Hall. Fun fact: when looking at the buildings, it spells out WSC! The Apartment Complex is more of an independent style of living with your own bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom, and living room. Sweet, right?

- Amanda

Scanlon Hall

The first building I'm going to give you guys a tour of is Scanlon Hall. Scanlon is a first-year residence hall so if you come in as a first-year student, this could very possibly be where you live! Exciting, right? The cool thing about Scanlon is that it has a lot going on. On the first floor of Scanlon is the Banquet Hall which is where a lot of events take place.We often have Brown Bag Bingo, dances, and other events. Last year, we had GloCrazy which was a really cool black light dance. There were a ton of glow sticks being passed around, black lights, strobe lights, and basically any kind of trippy light. We had a DJ and everything - it was a blast! GloCrazy was definitely one of the best events I have gone to so far. Scanlon is also home to Residential Life which is where you can go if you have any questions about housing, which I'll talk about a little later on in my blog. Any questions you have regarding housing and roommates, this is the place to go. Health Services is also in Scanlon, which I personally think is incredibly convenient. If you are ever sick, or hurt yourself, or simply need a band-aid, head on down and it's right in your building! Another thing about Scanlon is that right outside on the side walk is where the daily shuttle and the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority (PVTA) bus stops! The shuttle starts running at 3:00pm and runs until 3:00am the next morning. The shuttle stops at Horace Mann, Woodward Center, Scanlon, South Lot, and each residence hall, which is perfect for those rainy, cold, snowy days, or for days where you really don't feel like walking. Scanlon's hallways are co-ed, so each door is boy, girl, boy, girl, and so forth. There is a large common room on each floor along with a living room on the first floor!

- Amanda

Ely Campus Center

So, Ely Campus Center is my favorite building. There is so much going on in the Campus Center, it's amazing. On the first level of Ely is our campus bookstore. Here you can buy or rent your textbooks, buy clothing, magazines, and just about anything else you can think of.

On one side of the bookstore is our library. One the first floor of the library are brand new computers and printers with study rooms that can be reserved, and reference desks. On the second floor of the library are more private study rooms and another computer lab. Our school has over 125 databases and 17,000 full text journals. The cool thing about the library is that there are an additional five floors that are called the "Stacks". The stacks are filled with rows and rows of books. Imagine a book, and the stack probably has it, which is awesome. The rare occasion our library doesn't have it, we can order it from surrounding libraries as well.

On the other side of the bookstore is a lounge, Subway, and the Wellness Center. The Wellness Center is one of two gyms that our campus has. There are two floors to the Wellness Center: first floor is an aerobics room, some weights, bikes, ellipticals, and treadmills. In the aerobics room, there are classes that you can sign up for weekly. They offer Pilates, zumba, kickboxing, and so many other ones!

Going up the stairs to the second floor is the Theater Arts department. There's the Black Box theater where some smaller shows are put on.

On the third floor, my home, is the Communications department. The third floor contains classrooms, two all Mac labs, the TV and radio stations, and the Campus Voice newspaper. I love our communications department and since I spend most of my time there, you can see why I love Ely so much!

Last stop in Ely is the basement level. Walking down the stairs from the main lobby, to your right is the pool and to your left is a long hallway. Right in front is the Campus Window where you buy tickets for bus trips that our school goes on. I just recently bought a bus ticket to NYC for the day with my friends for $6.50. Yes, six dollars and fifty cents!!

Going down the hallway, we are passing by our school's Student Government Association's offices. Student Government Association (or SGA) is in charge of student activities, clubs, hall council, class council, etc. Our Campus Activities Board's offices are also in this hallway. CAB, as we call it, puts on events at school like bus trips, bingo, dances, and pretty much any other event on campus. Go a little further on down the hall and we reach the Owl's Nest which is where a lot of the events go on that CAB puts on. We also have movie nights down here, too, which are always fun! Reaching the end of the hallway is my personal favorite part of Ely! Drum roll...Dunkin Donuts! Yes, we have a full-service Dunkin Donuts!

- Amanda

Residential Halls

At Westfield State, there are eight residential halls on campus and one off-campus. Out of these nine, four are first-year halls; Scanlon, Dickinson, Davis, and Lammers.

As far as choosing which residence hall you want to live in, for your first-year you will receive a packet in the mail from Residential Life. In it, you number 1-4, 1 being the most desired, 4 being the least, and number which hall is your first, second, third, and fourth choice. Also in this packet is a form for roommates. You can either pick your roommate by writing his or her name down or you can choose a random roommate. If you choose to pick somebody you already know or have just met, in order for you both to live together, you have to both write down each other's name. If you choose to pick a random roommate, there is a website where you take an online questionnaire and it will match you with people who have similar answers. Make sure that you choose your answers honestly; you don't want to put that you're neat and get a neat roommate when your room usually looks like a tornado went off. Residential Life honestly wants to make sure that you have a great living experience, so if you are having any sort of issues, definitely stop by and talk to them.

Being in college, it's inevitable that there will be parties. You're away from home for the first time and living independently, which means no bed time, no parents hounding you to do your homework, and no parents around to bust you and your buddies if you guys decide to let loose a little bit. Westfield State is a dry campus, meaning that alcohol is not allowed unless you live in an on-campus apartment where every resident is 21 or over. If you're caught with alcohol or drugs, you have to complete ten hours of community service, have to pay a $100 fine, and attend alcohol education classes. On your second offense, you lose housing for the upcoming semester and on your third strike, you get kicked out of school. Parties happen but if you do choose to partake, be responsible about it. I'm not sure your parents would like to hear that you have to commute from home for a semester because you got caught partying.

In each residence hall, there are quiet hours ranging from 9pm-9am on Sundays-Thursdays and 11pm-9am on Fridays and Saturdays. What quiet hours are, are times where the noise level cannot exceed your room. Any other hours are where you can have noise, but just be courteous to others. Quiet hours can be great, especially if you have a test or around the midterms/finals weeks. It isn't as great if you and friends just so happen to be having a mini dance party in your room, but as long as your RA can't hear it from halfway down the hall, it's okay to have some noise!

Next topic: Residential Assistants, or RAs.
RAs are in charge of different sections of your residential hall. RAs are required to make posters for your sections, get to know you guys, and to put on events. Yes, it is their job to make sure you guys have fun! Your RAs are there any time you need them - to talk about roommate issues, help with advice, or just to talk!

Once you move in, you are given your student ID. You do not want to lose your student ID. This is your life-line. It holds not only your meal plan, Sodexo and Owl bucks (something later on we'll talk about), but also is what you print in the library with, and is your key to entering your resident hall. Your ID is specific to your own resident hall, and no other one. So if you try to get into somebody else's dorm with your ID, you can't. You have to wait for your friend or whomever to let you in. Starting at 9pm to 1am, there are RAs sitting at the front desk checking IDs of people walking in. If you have a non-WSU guest, you need to sign them in and if you have a WSU guest, they have to have their ID checked by the RAs. There are also Institutional State Officers, or as we call them, ISOs, roaming around the dorms late into the night to make sure that everyone is okay. I'll talk more about our school's safety later on.

Speaking of guests, let's talk about the guest policy! Each roommate can have up to two guests for three nights a week. When you sign your guest in, you are responsible for them, so keep an eye on them!

Fun fact #1: Our campus and each of our resident halls have wi-fi. Whoo for wi-fi!
Fun fact #2: Each resident hall has a laundry room and kitchen! You have to pay to do laundry, fortunately, but printing is free!
Fun fact #3: Printing is free!

- Amanda

Welcome!

Hello, all! My name is Amanda and I am currently a sophomore student at WSU. I am a communications major with a concentration in Public and Corporate Communications and a minor in Women and Gender Studies. Aside from being an Open House Tour Guide, I am also a member of our campus's Campus Activity Board - aka CAB. Being a communications major, I am required to take a technology class in which I learn how to use different forms of technology to help me in my career, such as, Photoshop, Garageband, iMovie, blogging, etc.

As my final project, I decided to create a blog about our home here in Westfield. I wanted to have the audience be students and families that are interested in coming to WSU. Being a tour guide and student, I want to show off the best of WSU but I know that speaking to adults about it can sometimes sound too rehearsed and stuffy, which is why I decided to write about our school from my own point of view. I want my blog to sound like a friend talking to you about how awesome her school is and be relatable, but of course, appropriate enough for parents to read as well. Luckily when I was applying to schools during senior year of high school, I had older friends who were able to tell me what the brochures and open houses could not. It was great being able to hear about the experiences of my peers and I want to be that for other students.

If there are any questions at all about WSU please feel free to comment and let me know! I hope that by reading this blog and coming out to see campus, you will fall in love with our school as much as I did!

- Amanda