Pittsburg State University

Nestled near the southeast corner of Kansas is the town of Pittsburg. Home to over twenty thousand people, Pittsburg is more than just blip on the radar. The town boasts many great attractions, but none bigger than its university. Pittsburg State University has over 7300 students enrolled, and continues to grow. The education is great,  the atmosphere is great, oh and by the way, the Pittsburg State Gorillas were the 2011 Division 2 Football National Champions.

Upon arrival on campus in this wonderful town, you will immediately see the leaves of fall on the lush green grass in the Oval. I have attended Pitt for three years, and have relished every single moment. The atmosphere and university feel is something I cherish greatly. The teachers are more than just teachers, they are compassionate human beings giving attention to seemingly every student. They try to help you tremendously and will go out of their way to make sure that your understand everything. Just like all schools, you will find some teachers that you don't like but overall their all pretty good at their job.

Athletically, Pittsburg is skyrocketing into the national scene again. Our athletics department is top notch in division 2. Our women's basketball team has improved greatly and is going to be fighting for a deep run into the playoffs and possibly even a national championship. The football team, as mentioned above, is the defending national champion and has a legacy of domination in division two. Carnie Smith stadium and the Weede gym are one of a kind in the division 2 atmosphere. The other sports all excel as well. The town takes great pride in supporting the athletes and the athletic department.

The social life here at Pitt State rivals that of a big university. For the amount of student enrollment, PSU students know how to have a good time. There is always something going on. Regardless of whether you drink or not, there are many activities that are happening. For example, they play movies on the jumbo-tron certain nights of the week, bars that have specials and happy hours every night of the week, and on campus activities that involve clubs and organizations.

The last and final aspect of PSU, that I would like to talk about is recreation center. This gym/rec is, quite simply, unmatched across the nation. It is amazing. It has four basketball courts that you can use to play just about anything. On top of the courts it has two levels of workout equipment including a mezzanine running track. This all just describes why someone would want to attend a great university such as PSU.

If your looking for an affordable, resourceful, and small town atmosphere for a college Pittsburg State is the place for you. Also, if you are one who likes to be social, their is always a time and place for that here

Avila Women's Basketball Season Preview

A year removed from traveling to Frankfort, KY for the National Tournament, the Avila Eagles are setting their sites even higher. A year ago, Coach Larry Williams and his girls basketball team won their first National Tournament game in program history. The Eagles finished with an overall record of 22-11, compiling a 14-4 conference record in the always-difficult Heart of America Athletic Conference. Avila will return eight players from last year’s team, including starters Cassie Bruner, Rebekah Capeder, and Courtney Gimlin. Other returning letter winners are Stephanie Miller, Arianne Henry, Samantha York, Kendra Crow, and Jackie Wacha. The losses of Torie Murillo, Brittany Townsend, and Loganne Grider will certainly be difficult to replace, but Coach Williams is looking to Senior Cassie Bruner and  Sophomore Rebekah Capeder to build upon last year’s impressive output. Bruner and Capeder formed a deadly duo on the inside, providing the Eagles with nearly 20 PPG and 21 RPG. Jackie Wacha looks to fill some big shoes this year. She will be replacing a a third team all american, and HAAC defensive player of the year. She started 5 games for the eagles last year and will look to help lead this team to a great season. Courtney, Stephanie, Kendra, and Samantha look to provide even more scoring and rebounding that the eagles will need to succeed. Avila added 6 newcomers this year who look to fight for playing time and maybe even some starting positions. 

Last year’s National Tournament bid was unchartered waters for the Eagles. This year, Coach Williams hopes to use that tournament experience as a building block for bigger and better things. Tune in this winter as the Eagles look to fight for another tournament bid, and hopefully even more. 

Special Thanks to David Embers (@davidembers) for the help in revising this blog..His blog is a great read go check it out thoughtswithdavidembers.blogspot.com

Investing for college graduates

Most of my friends are either graduating in the coming semesters or have already graduated this past year. Upon graduating and getting that first real world, grown up job you need to start thinking about saving money and planning for retirement. I recently read an article that said about a third of people younger than 35 think they will retire before the age of 60. There are various ways for you to achieve this. It will be hard but starting to save is important. One way to start saving is to enroll in your company backed 401(k). Most companies offer this to full time employees. Upon enrollment, they usually match your percentage of contribution up to a certain amount. This is a great way to start saving and also give you some future funds to rely on. This is just one of the many ways to start saving, but one that I feel is a necessity and your first option.

As far as investing goes, stocks are the most popular investments. In my opinion, most stocks are far to risky of investment. It all depends on how risk averse you are. To me, mutual funds or ETF's are a much safer and better investment. Most people don't know what ETF's are so I'll give you some advantages of them. The have a lower cost, tax features, and a stock similarity. Real estate is most people's biggest financial asset and investment. In the low economy, the importance of owning your house and having it paid off is a huge deal, and very crucial. Back to investing, currency is very popular right now. Currency trading takes a lot of research and a lot of work but it can pays huge dividends in the long run. Most people just load up on a bunch of the same stock, bond, or mutual funds. This is exactly what you shouldn't do. Diversifying is an absolutely necessary part of your financial portfolio. The term diversify means to reduce risk by investing in a wide range of assets or investments.

In summary, ETF's and currency are very popular aspects to your diversified portfolio. Everything depends on how much risk you are willing to have.

Professional sports

Sunday's and monday night during the fall are dedicated to a sport most people love to watch. This of course being the national football league. Or in some smaller towns in Kansas your junior varsity high school football. The NFL has reached what I believe to be a new, higher level of followers or fans. It seems as though more people are going to the games and watching it around the country at local bars or eating establishments. Not only is it the NFL but the same is true for the MLB and the NBA. This makes a rise to the business aspect of these professional sports. They are profiting off of this rise greatly. Yet, the owners and presidents of these teams and leagues continually try to get more and more money by taking it from the players (this is a whole other topic), stadium-goers, and fans in general. It is just absolutely ridiculous to have to pay $27 to park in a grass field a mile from the stadium, $8.25 for a 16oz beer, or $5 for a hot dog. This is just the owners trying to get more money out of us fans. The costs of tickets to professional sporting events rise on average 4 percent a year. Fans are willing to pay more for the tickets because the ticket price includes the whole experience of the stadium and atmosphere of cheering your team on. I know, i am complaining about the cost of heading to sports events, but a true fan will continue going no matter the cost.

Division 2 football

Almost everyone dreams, at one time or another, of playing a sport in college. For some this dream becomes a reality and for others it is a disappointment. Playing a division 1 sport is the overall goal in most peoples dreams. Most of those people will not make it to the division 1 level so they choose division 2. Which is where the majority of this blog is based. Division 2 athletes put in the same amount of work and play just as hard as the division 1 athletes. There is just one big difference between the two divisions which in my opinion is the backing by the communities. I know for one Pittburg backs their athletics at Pittsburg State greatly. The community, the week before the first home game, has what they call "paint the town red". This consists of all the businesses covering their stores from top to bottom in red and yellow. This is something you don't see in most division 1 communities. Yes, there are more followers in the division 1 level but I believe that division 2 athletics are backed by everyone in the community. For example, the first home game this past weekend at Pitt had an attendance of over 10,000 people which is crazy for a division 2 school. This just shows how dedicated the fans are to their program.

Connecting to the world

People have always told me, it's not what you know but WHO you know. This is an extremely important part of your success in life and in the workplace. Knowing a wide range of people and having connections over a broad spectrum could get you the job you want or to the position you want in life. I have recently been looking for jobs once I graduate. Helping with this research and gathering is the website LinkedIn. It is a very useful resource to have. It can allow you to connect with people you have met over the years but in a more professional aspect then Facebook. Another important resource is actually going out and meeting peoria at job fairs or chamber of commerce events. While going to these events you should never feel nervous or shy. Everyone has been in the position as you. I have found that people enjoy talking to soon to be graduates because it gives them a younger more enthusiastic job audience. With this being said you have do stuff yourself, people aren't going to do it for you.

Planning for retirement: more important than ever

Planning for retirement is a must for young and upcoming families and couples. Studies show that it costs a medium income family $235,000 to raise a child from birth to the age of 17. Most people cannot fully cover the costs associated with children. This is why planning for that and planning for retirement are so important. I recently started working at a financial services company and some of the things I have found out are astounding. Most people don't realize that for younger generations, social security may not be available for them and helping prepare for that is something that I am slowly learning. Another big thing I have discovered is that a lot of people do not have enough life insurance on themselves. You need to keep your policies in check and make sure that you are meeting with your advisors at least once a year to talk about such things.

Mothers Day

A mother is someone who is always there for you no matter what the situation or circumstances. She is the strongest woman you will ever have in your life and someone that you should cherish always being there. I lost my mother almost 4 years ago to cancer. She had it for 12 years and never once complained about her situation. She made the most of it and was always there for me, to cheer me on and to be my support system. I see and hear people complain about their mothers and how they are supposedly "ruining" and interjecting their lives. I have one simple question to those people. What would you do when your mom isn't there anymore? The situation that I was put in, was a horrible one, but one that was even more terrifying for my mom. It made me such a better, more independent, and more aware that not everything in life is good. Although she is not here anymore she will forever be in my heart and will be looking over me where ever i may be. So next time you complain about your mother remember that she always has your best interests in mind and always tell her your love her.

Internet Privacy, No More

When people get on the internet and social networking sites, they expect that there is still some sort of privacy present. This may not be the case anymore. The government has launched a new program to "spy" on emails that are sent and received. To me, this seems like a big waste of taxpayer dollars, especially when our economy is at a loss. Another point is that spying on peoples emails and online profiles, is not going to protect that many people. Yes it will help with some of the terrorist threats within the U.S. but other than that it wouldn't do much.  4 online privacy worries

Maximize your wealth

Most people have trouble finding enough money at the end of the month for bills and other necessary things. There are certain things people need to realize with this problem and that is that its not going to get any easier. Therefore, they need to cut back on all the "wants" and unnecessary items and focus on their present necessities and also focus on their future.

Retirement in today's society

Retiring is a huge part of people's lives. Planning for retirement in today's society is a necessity. With social security benefits not being guaranteed for us younger generation people, we must plan for that huge time in our lives. Most people cannot retire on just their savings and what money they earn from their job. This is why financial planning and ways of investing are so important. Financial planning could be used thru life insurance, stocks, mutual funds, or IRAs. I believe that all of these are good options but I disagree with most people by saying that I believe stock are far too risky to dabble in. Yes, they can pay off in huge sums but the risk aversion is something i look for when it comes to assuring a comfortable retirement.