Indiana Bound

No I'm not going to the Final Four this weekend (I wish I had courtside seats to see the most unlikely Final Four participant ever). I will, however, be moving to Indiana at the end of the summer to attend grad school at Indiana University's School of Public and Environmental Affairs.

For those of you who didn't even know I was looking into grad school, I will be pursuing my Master's in Public Affairs focusing in non-profit management. Much like St. Louis, I have never been to Bloomington, but this is one of the premier programs in the nation for people seeking to go into non-profit management. Since it is my dream to open up and run my own non-profit agency, I feel this is an excellent opportunity to get the education background that I'll need to succeed. Indiana will also provide many doors for the future through the people I meet and the organizations they are partnered. Between my experience with AmeriCorps St. Louis and earning my Master's Degree, I know I will be well-prepared for life in a non-profit.

While I still have a lot of questions that will be answered in the coming months, right now I'm focused on finishing out my term with AmeriCorps before re-focusing on my return to academia. I know for some people it's hard to imagine moving to somewhere you've never even been, but for me it's just another learning experience. Much like AmeriCorps, I'll be starting with another group of like-minded individuals at a large university, so I'm not too worried about the adjustment.

I've also learned there's no sense in worrying about your finances. They take care of themselves, and honestly, I would rather leave a legacy of giving behind than a lump of money so if I live the rest of my life just getting by, I won't see that as a problem. Believe me, you can live comfortably making it paycheck to paycheck, and if that's the sacrafice I have to make in order to start a non-profit, that's just what I'll do.

So those are my thoughts on what the near future looks like. I'm extremely excited about this new adventure and will keep everyone up-to-date on my doings. Who knows, maybe I'll spend some time overseas after grad school working for an international non-profit?