University of Michigan - Michiganensian Yearbook (Ann Arbor, MI)

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i ' r?., t V liU I -- r in ;nts Junior English and history of major Eileen Hengel stands London, England with Big Ben in background. While most studei only went abroad for one semester, Hengel chose to spend the entire year at the University of Sussex, Photo courtesy Eileen Henge I ' ifSi: ' ' .- f .- i road

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A large blow-up penis bounces over the heads of graduates. Though it was normal to throw around colorful beach balls, this was an unusual first. L. Worcester photo On April 29, 2006, thousands of graduates flooded Michigan Stadium to be formally pronounced as University alumni during the 2006 Spring Commencement. With so many graduates from the different colleges, commencement was held in Michigan Stadium in order to accommodate everyone. Graduated history and history of art senior, Shelby Ludtke said, Graduation was completely surreal. It was like any regular day, except there were thousands of people dressed in ridiculous black gowns traipsing through the streets like we were headed to a football game. Many students adorned their mortarboards with messages such as Thanks Mom so their family and friends could pick them out of the sea of black. Graduating English and communication studies senior Katrina Deutsch said, It was crazy. I thought I knew a good amount of people at this University until graduation. There were new faces everywhere. My mom called me while the procession was going on and told me that she saw me walking into the stadium, but I was still standing in the parking lot in line! Unlike years previous, the graduates seemed to enjoy and appreciate the invited keynote speaker, CNN Chief International Correspondent, Christiane Amanpour. Her speech was well-delivered and she memorably stated, Ladies and gentlemen of the class of 2006, self-absorbed is so ' yesterday. ' It ' s out. ' Cool ' is now to be a citizen of our world, not just an inhabitant. Graduated English senior Michael Bolgar said, I was very pleased with the speaker at graduation. It resonated a lot with the current climate of the world and it posed concerns without steering away from the real message of the day, graduation. Finally, University President Mary Sue Coleman ended her speech with the heart- warming remark, For today, goodbye. For tomorrow, good luck. And forever, Go Blue! Coleman could not have been more accurate in her description of being a Michigan alum. Graduated Spanish senior, Robert Fowler, concluded, Graduating from U of M is the greatest thing ever because without a doubt, no matter where you are in the world, you will meet a fellow alum. It ' s amazing to be able to say Go Blue in any country, on any continent. Booyah.

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' Abroad ' Experience by ' Elise ' Rose On September 27 th , 2006, many University students gathered together to attend the Study Abroad Fair. Browsing around the displays in the Michigan Union Ballroom, students were drawn in by the variety of options open to them. Every year, studying abroad had become more of the norm for students on campus. With programs in Japan, France, South Africa and many other interesting locations, taking a semester to study in another country had become increasingly appealing to students. I decided to go to Paris because I wanted to be able to try out my French skills, and I really wanted to spend the summer somewhere fun, said junior film and video studies major Liz DeCamp. Students began to realize that it wasn ' t neccessary to take fall or winter semester off, but they could instead spend the spring or summer term overseas. I don ' t think I would ' ve been able to do it during the year, but spending the summer semester in Paris was perfect, DeCamp said. Like DeCamp, junior English and history of art major Chelsea Langston also spent the summer abroad, but instead of Paris, she chose Italy. I chose to study abroad to experience a different culture and open myself to a new mindset, Langston said. The program that Langston was involved in allowed her to live with other students but still experience Italian culture. I learned to rely on myself a lot more than I did in America, and it taught me to be a lot more aware of what I was projecting to those around me, Langston said. Furthermore, Langston found the culture in Italy really different than that of the States. The Italian mindset was so different from the American viewpoint and the experience challenged a lot of beliefs that I didn ' t even know I had, Langston said. Still, some University students opted for the traditional study abroad, and chose to spend an entire year immersed in culture and foreign language. Junior history of art major Ross Johnson was one such person. I wanted to stay long enough to get more of a feeling of what it was like to live there, Johnson said about spending the year in Paris. Johnson chose to live in Paris for the year in order to get another point of view and learn more about himself and the place in which he lived. I started to become more interested in living and studying in Paris, and I thought that being in Paris would open more doors in the nature, Johnson said. Senior biology and German major William Spalding has lunch with new friends in a Gasthof. He spent a summer studying with the Goethe Institute in Rothenburg, Germany. Photo courtesy Connie Chang The Eifel Tower looks beautiful, even in the rain, said junior English major Mary Li. Europe was a popular place to study abroad. Photo courtesy Mary Li michigan life 1 7