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article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
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niu79 Offline
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Post: #61
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
(04-25-2018 11:20 AM)NIUfilmmaker Wrote:  
(04-25-2018 10:18 AM)Dog Fan Wrote:  
(04-25-2018 10:10 AM)NIUfilmmaker Wrote:  
(04-25-2018 10:05 AM)Dog Fan Wrote:  
(04-25-2018 09:09 AM)BDB5yp Wrote:  I get it. DeKalb is not your typical suburb of Chicago where nothing happens, but to call DeKalb dangerous is an exaggeration. I would send my kids there if it were their best option. Quality school in a quality town. Teach your kids some basic survival skills. Like be aware of your surroundings.

For sure, I'd send my kids there if they could carry a gun....and use it, if needed, with no repercussions. THAT'S what I call survival skills today. Obviously, there is no chance of that happening. Only the thugs can carry and use guns.

Dekalb was a great, quite little college town when I attended. Sounds like a bad element has moved into a few areas, mostly brought on by lower NIU attendance and empty/cheap apartments coming available as a result. Dekalb is still a nice little community, better than many college towns. Lets hope the state quits holding us back, attendance climbs back up, the bad element dissipates.

Yes, DeKalb/Sycamore was a wonderful area with so much to offer. When I went to NIU, things were great. We had very little concern. There was a bad element, but it seemed contained, and guns were not much of an issue. Now, there are areas you just don't go into. And the dorms are a problem, too. This is one of the main reasons why the community does not support NIU. DeKalb/Sycamore is a more conservative area, and they do not need or want the Chicago antics. Unfortunately, that's what they are saddled with.

Agreed, just saying this is not an NIU-specific problem. I think Urbana, Charleston and Carbondale all look/feel a bit different then they did 20-30 years ago.

Hoping for more reliable state funding and increased enrollment, pronto.

Don't hold your breath on the state funding, and the perception of NIU compared to ISU will continue to depress the quantity and quality of new enrollees until something is done to address it. Our university seems to lack a vision to confront the issues it is facing.
04-25-2018 11:42 AM
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MiamiHuskie Offline
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Post: #62
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
This is a depressing thread...I had no idea things were that bad in DeKalb.
I went there in the late 70's (yes, I'm old) and DeKalb was a decent place.

My brother attended NIU in the 60's, before the riots.

The school needs not only to address the perception of being high crime, but also find a niche in the increasing competitive college market. On-line classes have taken off, as have JUCO.

Hopefully the current leadership will turn things around, but with the budget situation I'm not overly optimistic.

Illinois in general seems to be slowly decaying.
04-25-2018 11:53 AM
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Dog Fan Offline
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Post: #63
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
(04-25-2018 11:53 AM)MiamiHuskie Wrote:  This is a depressing thread...I had no idea things were that bad in DeKalb.
I went there in the late 70's (yes, I'm old) and DeKalb was a decent place.

My brother attended NIU in the 60's, before the riots.

The school needs not only to address the perception of being high crime, but also find a niche in the increasing competitive college market. On-line classes have taken off, as have JUCO.

Hopefully the current leadership will turn things around, but with the budget situation I'm not overly optimistic.

Illinois in general seems to be slowly decaying.

I agree. When I went to NIU in the 70s, it was a lot different. Very enjoyable with lots of things to do. When all else failed, we would walk from the dorms into town to do some shopping on a Saturday afternoon. Things were pleasant, and we did not hear much about crime. But, things are a bit different now.

NIU needs to address and fix the problem fast. They will need to work with the community to mend some fences. In addition, they need to do some positive publicity. Sitting back and doing nothing will exacerbate the problem.
04-25-2018 11:59 AM
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NIU007 Offline
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Post: #64
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
(04-25-2018 11:59 AM)Dog Fan Wrote:  
(04-25-2018 11:53 AM)MiamiHuskie Wrote:  This is a depressing thread...I had no idea things were that bad in DeKalb.
I went there in the late 70's (yes, I'm old) and DeKalb was a decent place.

My brother attended NIU in the 60's, before the riots.

The school needs not only to address the perception of being high crime, but also find a niche in the increasing competitive college market. On-line classes have taken off, as have JUCO.

Hopefully the current leadership will turn things around, but with the budget situation I'm not overly optimistic.

Illinois in general seems to be slowly decaying.

I agree. When I went to NIU in the 70s, it was a lot different. Very enjoyable with lots of things to do. When all else failed, we would walk from the dorms into town to do some shopping on a Saturday afternoon. Things were pleasant, and we did not hear much about crime. But, things are a bit different now.

NIU needs to address and fix the problem fast. They will need to work with the community to mend some fences. In addition, they need to do some positive publicity. Sitting back and doing nothing will exacerbate the problem.

I went there in the late 80s and didn't notice any issues then either.
04-25-2018 12:44 PM
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HuskiePride12 Offline
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Post: #65
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
I would not feel safe sending my kid to NIU right now either and I graduated in 2010. There is just not a good feeling of safety anymore when you are campus IMO and nothing seems to be changing.
04-25-2018 01:00 PM
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BDB5yp Offline
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Post: #66
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
Some of you guys are acting like Dekalb is the second coming of Englewood. There’s no perfect college town. Champaign, Bloomington/Normal, Peoria, Chicago, Evanston all have issues with crime. Your kids have a greater chance of dying from alcohol poisoning, than of murder in Dekalb. It’s just an excuse not to support.....
04-25-2018 01:15 PM
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MMBOANIU Offline
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Post: #67
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
Not saying all is great. But, plenty of issues at other universities on or near campus. I am sure things are much worse than my time way back when. I still support my daughter in her choice of NIU for the degree she wants and activities she can participate in. Of course I will caution her of dangers there also.
04-25-2018 03:10 PM
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NIUfilmmaker Offline
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Post: #68
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
(04-25-2018 01:15 PM)BDB5yp Wrote:  Some of you guys are acting like Dekalb is the second coming of Englewood. There’s no perfect college town. Champaign, Bloomington/Normal, Peoria, Chicago, Evanston all have issues with crime. Your kids have a greater chance of dying from alcohol poisoning, than of murder in Dekalb. It’s just an excuse not to support.....

+1
A definite blight here and there that could use fixing, but still a very decent college town.


https://www.niutoday.info/2016/11/07/niu...-campuses/

https://www.alarms.org/safest-colleges-2017/


Send your kids alumni, the sky is not falling 03-wink
(This post was last modified: 04-25-2018 03:43 PM by NIUfilmmaker.)
04-25-2018 03:41 PM
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niu79 Offline
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Post: #69
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
(04-25-2018 03:41 PM)NIUfilmmaker Wrote:  [quote='BDB5yp' pid='15268441' dateline='1524680135']
Some of you guys are acting like Dekalb is the second coming of Englewood. There’s no perfect college town. Champaign, Bloomington/Normal, Peoria, Chicago, Evanston all have issues with crime. Your kids have a greater chance of dying from alcohol poisoning, than of murder in Dekalb. It’s just an excuse not to support.....

+1
A definite blight here and there that could use fixing, but still a very decent college town.


https://www.niutoday.info/2016/11/07/niu...-campuses/

https://www.alarms.org/safest-colleges-2017/


Send your kids alumni, the sky is not falling 03-wink
[/quote

Problem is not just parents. The kids in high school are not desiring to go to NIU either.
04-25-2018 04:08 PM
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Dog Fan Offline
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Post: #70
article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
(04-25-2018 04:08 PM)niu79 Wrote:  
(04-25-2018 03:41 PM)NIUfilmmaker Wrote:  [quote='BDB5yp' pid='15268441' dateline='1524680135']
Some of you guys are acting like Dekalb is the second coming of Englewood. There’s no perfect college town. Champaign, Bloomington/Normal, Peoria, Chicago, Evanston all have issues with crime. Your kids have a greater chance of dying from alcohol poisoning, than of murder in Dekalb. It’s just an excuse not to support.....

+1
A definite blight here and there that could use fixing, but still a very decent college town.


https://www.niutoday.info/2016/11/07/niu...-campuses/

https://www.alarms.org/safest-colleges-2017/


Send your kids alumni, the sky is not falling 03-wink
[/quote

Problem is not just parents. The kids in high school are not desiring to go to NIU either.


This is why success in football and basketball is so important. It can help overcome some of the negative perceptions and increase the number of students attending - as it did in the past. Publicity for success in sports translates to publicity for the entire university.
04-25-2018 05:41 PM
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HW58 Offline
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Post: #71
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
(04-25-2018 03:41 PM)NIUfilmmaker Wrote:  
(04-25-2018 01:15 PM)BDB5yp Wrote:  Some of you guys are acting like Dekalb is the second coming of Englewood. There’s no perfect college town. Champaign, Bloomington/Normal, Peoria, Chicago, Evanston all have issues with crime. Your kids have a greater chance of dying from alcohol poisoning, than of murder in Dekalb. It’s just an excuse not to support.....

+1
A definite blight here and there that could use fixing, but still a very decent college town.

https://www.niutoday.info/2016/11/07/niu...-campuses/

https://www.alarms.org/safest-colleges-2017/

Send your kids alumni, the sky is not falling 03-wink

Thx Filmmaker, BDB and MMBOA for injecting some positive thoughts and links to outsider perspectives into this dreary discussion. My wife and I went to NIU in the early '80s and lived there while I finished up grad school. Downtown DeKalb had a lot more going on back then, and around campus Sgt. Pepper's, Hannigan's (I think that was the name of it, over by the movie theatre), and the Jungle were thriving. But there were plenty of sketchy areas and places as well. McCabe's was one of the most popular hangouts and had its share of problems--my buddy was a bouncer there and he cracked plenty of skulls out back every weekend, college kids and townies alike. A lot of the comments on this thread are a good reminder about how the prism of time makes the old days look so much better than they really were. I'm sure DeKalb 2018 has its issues, maybe more today than back then, but like BDB said, I don't believe it's as bad as some guys are making it out to be. My daughter just became an ad hoc professor at NIU and loves the program she's in, the students, the vibe. There's a lot to be fixed at NIU and in DeKalb--and between the two--that's for sure. But it can be done. I'd be curious to know how many posters on this thread with doom and gloom stories about DeKalb/Sycamore actually live there or have a kid attending NIU? Are the stories first hand accounts, or just more rumor mongering?
04-25-2018 08:26 PM
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NIU84 Offline
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Post: #72
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
I think we can all agree that if you want to see a real pit of a town, go to Toledo.

:)
04-25-2018 08:51 PM
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MiamiHuskie Offline
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Post: #73
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
Perception is reality, and if people perceive DeKalb to be more dangerous , it is. All college towns have their share of problems, but NIU is stuck with the rep that it needs to shake. NIU needs DeKalb, Dekalb needs NIU. Get together and do SOMETHING.
04-25-2018 09:41 PM
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HW58 Offline
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Post: #74
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
True enough. And if the perception isn't reality (I'm not saying I know the answer), then we should do our small part on Dog Pound to try and improve the school's rep rather than continue to damage it.
04-26-2018 10:45 AM
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Dog Fan Offline
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Post: #75
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
Illinois State - "an undiscovered gem globally" - seems to be weathering the budget issues. That seems to be where, if a student can't get into the U of I, parents want to send their kids.

ISU An Undiscovered Gem
04-27-2018 09:26 AM
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thxjoenovak Offline
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Post: #76
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
(04-27-2018 09:26 AM)Dog Fan Wrote:  Illinois State - "an undiscovered gem globally" - seems to be weathering the budget issues. That seems to be where, if a student can't get into the U of I, parents want to send their kids.

ISU An Undiscovered Gem

Or sadly, the state of Iowa, which makes it even more affordable.
04-27-2018 12:12 PM
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NIUfilmmaker Offline
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Post: #77
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
(04-27-2018 09:26 AM)Dog Fan Wrote:  Illinois State - "an undiscovered gem globally" - seems to be weathering the budget issues. That seems to be where, if a student can't get into the U of I, parents want to send their kids.

ISU An Undiscovered Gem

1) The grantor of this unofficial "undiscovered gem globally" status is the local newspaper 03-wink

2) They admit "Illinois ranks sixth in the nation in terms of international students attending its colleges and universities, yet international students comprise only 2 percent of Illinois State University's campus enrollment." ...Sounds VERY UNDISCOVERED so far :(

Get over ISU, we'll overtake them in attendance once again in the near future.


...Remember that glum guy from the Adventures of Gulliver? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KvNt5NG-GM
#dontbeaglum
(This post was last modified: 04-27-2018 01:31 PM by NIUfilmmaker.)
04-27-2018 01:00 PM
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Boca Rocket Offline
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Post: #78
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
(04-25-2018 08:51 PM)NIU84 Wrote:  I think we can all agree that if you want to see a real pit of a town, go to Toledo.

:)

Downtown Toledo is rapidly changing. The 4 star Renaissance Hotel opened in August. The Seagate Hotel is under going a $30 mil+ renovation. Promedica opened its new corporate headquarters on the river and brought 1,000+ jobs to the downtown area in September. Of course there are the Huntington Center and the FifthThird Field.
(This post was last modified: 04-29-2018 10:57 AM by Boca Rocket.)
04-29-2018 10:56 AM
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NIU007 Offline
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Post: #79
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
You guys need to stop talking about ISU, or that ISU troll will show up on here again and annoy everyone.
04-30-2018 08:34 AM
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Dog Fan Offline
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Post: #80
RE: article in Northern Star.... more cuts coming, bummer
(04-30-2018 08:34 AM)NIU007 Wrote:  You guys need to stop talking about ISU, or that ISU troll will show up on here again and annoy everyone.

Nah, he has now matured and is in grad school.......at NIU.
04-30-2018 08:43 AM
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