D is a junior who just accepted full athletic scholarship. She is very excited, but I have not seen the campus yet (D went by herself on recruiting trip 2 weeks ago). I haven't even been to Wisconsin ever!! Since it is an urban campus, I am a little worried about the crime stats. Can anyone enlighten me?
Husband and I had the same apprehension about the urban campus. We are so glad we took the time to take a side trip up to Marquette while vacationing in Chicago. It was just a two hour drive, and we are so glad we did it.
The campus is separate from the city, on the other side of the highway. The street through the campus is not a big highway, it's a two or four lane road, and not a lot of traffic.
There's a blue light and limo system. And the campus is in its own area. Don't have to walk through a neighborhood to get from one class building to another.
Son is a junior in high school, and we did this last summer, because we're here in Louisiana, and going all the way to Wisconsin is a very big deal for us. If it didn't feel right, for him or us, we'd have time to look elsewhere.
I'd highly recommend going up there. I don't know where you're coming from, but flights to Chicago are easy to get, and if you're on a Southwest route, they're fairly inexpensive. Southwest flies in to Midway, so you can rent a car there, and drive up. Get a GPS. We also drove through Loyola and Northwestern on the way. If you have time and are interested in those schools, try to make a formal visit there as well. Kill multiple birds with one stone. Don't know where they are, but DePaul and UChicago are possible visits sites as well, if they have your major.
Good luck, and use this forum. There are great people on this site who are very honest and willing to help.
cheerios -- It is everyone's concern; believe me, it was mine. Daughter is finishing up her freshman year and has had no concerns. She is pretty urban street smart, though; and you have to be. She goes out at night with others and takes the university LIMO. Kids go together in groups on the city busses to the lakefront, the suburban mall, to Brewers Stadium. She also has no reservations walking ON CAMPUS alone at night. As Montegut points out, campus is well defined and very well patrolled. She will walk from library to dorm or from dorm to dorm all the time.
Crime stats are way down. Last spring, there was a mini-rash of robberies in the area. Nothing like that this year. Public safety lists all the safety alerts, and I think there have only been two ALL SCHOOL YEAR. Crime in the city in general has been declining year by year, though that is NOT to say that there are no problems and that the kids don't need to be careful.
Go see for yourself. It is definitely an urban area, but I think you will be pleasantly surprised and reassured. The more questionable areas are to the west and north, and the kids mostly go east for entertainment. The LIMO will also take you to most of the off-campus apartments, to the Rave (a concert club) and to the Amtrak station after five.
Feel free to PM me!
I would like to add one thing, and it surely isn't specific to Marquette, although I was attending a parents forum there when a professor made this excellent point--
He described the established safety precautions much as dbwes has here. Then he added that he hoped parents would encourage students to take part of safety responsibility on themselves. First and foremost?? Lose the Ipods. He noted the most important factor in safety is being aware of one's surroundings, and with the techno everything our kids have at their disposal, they are frequently oblivious to the world around them.
A simple step, of course, but I thought a valid suggestion and shared it with our S right away. I know it's become commonplace for them, but what an easy habit to break if it could make a difference.
I know that a lot of women's self defense classes stress this, being aware of your surroundings, but it never occurred to me that it applies to our kids as well.
I've seen many a skateboarding kid almost get killed because they're listening to their ipod instead of being aware of traffic in a parking lot.
Not surprising that thieves would take advantage of this, much like they take advantage of victims who are drunk, stoned, emotionally upset.
D is a volleyball recruit who gave her commitment last week to Marquette. She is very excited, but is more of a suburban kid. (My 3 older ones are tried and true New York City kids - go figure). I am making good use of all the video of the campus available on the net. I think she will be fine, but it will take a while to get used to city life. Thanks!
My son works for the Student Safety Department and they are nationally recognized for their program. They have walkers ( to escort you if you want to walk) as well as LIMOs. They respond quickly and also look out for problems. The public safety department is also excellent.
My son also got to know many of the girls in the VB and they were a good group of girls
