Students remain in Bloomington for jobs, relaxation

It’s dead week. It’s 70 degrees outside and you’re stuck in Woodburn Hall. A classmate sitting next to you, wipes the sweat from his brow, turns to you and says: “What are you doing this summer?” \nYou turn your head toward him and casually say: “You know, staying in Bloomington.” His mouth drops open: “Why?”\nThe better question is: why not?\nFrom working a job to pay the bills or taking summer classes and relaxing, Bloomington has enough to provide a decent summer, students say.\nSophomore Amanda Caldari plans to stay over the summer because she has a year-long lease on her apartment. Caldari said she also plans on relaxing.\n“I’m looking forward to spending time here when it’s not crowded,” Caldari said. \nShe also said she feels like Bloomington is the only concrete home she has right now. Her mother recently moved from Long Island, N.Y., to Houston, and her father moved from Indiana to Florida. \nOther students have specific plans for the summer. \nSophomore Ashley Seeger plans on staying in Bloomington this summer to work and take summer classes. Seeger is also a member of the nonprofit organization, Students in Free Enterprise. \n“SIFE is an organization where students can extend their knowledge outside the classroom and have the opportunity to work one-on-one with the community,” Seeger said. \nSeeger and a fellow member came up with an idea called Smart Cookie Banking, which teaches personal finance to young students. Their idea won the regional competition and the members of SIFE on campus will be traveling to Dallas on May 6 through \nMay 8 for the SIFE National Exposition.\nOthers don’t have such ambitious goals for their summers.\nSophomore Kristin Casey said she just plans on working at Buffalo Wild Wings this summer. Casey explained that she wants the summer to be a glorified version of Little 500, minus the bike races.\n“I’m going to work so I can make a lot of money and then buy a lot of alcohol,” Casey said jokingly.