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The 1995 IIT Admission's gathering was held at the Ponce Hilton and Casino which you can see from across the bay. The previous several years, we had met in hotels in the San Juan Area. One of our students had commented that many of IIT's Puerto Rican students, past and present, came from the area between Mayaguez and Ponce.
Ponce seemed to split the distance between the major population areas. Maban (Mechanical engineer, honors graduate, class of 95) and her family, Mr. and Mrs. Jimenez, acted as Island hosts for IIT's gathering. Because we met in early January just before school started, IIT students home for the Christmas vacation and a number of alumns were able to join us in Ponce.
I arrived several hours early and got the materials and room ready. Signs were posted and we were ready for the crowd. Ultimately, about 50 students, many with parents and siblings in tow, filled our room. Maban, Cesar (Chemical engineering), and Roxanna (Business) met our guests, aided in filling out forms, and spoke of their experiences in Chicago and the quality of the education they were receiving. This was a most pleasent afternoon. On the way out, a 50 cent bet in the slots won 50$.
Cesar and I gave short welcome speechs but most of our time was spent enjoying student stories about campus life, dorm food, tough classes, and then guests interacting with our alumns and current students. It was a most pleasent afternoon. A good time was had by all. On the way out, a 50 cent bet in the slots won 50$. The 1996 reception will at in San Juan at the Hotel Condado Hilton in Feb 96.
Well its below zero in Chicago and the Island seems particularly friendly. We are back in the San Juan area for 96. The Jimenez and Quintana families hosted our gathering this year. Alberto Quintana (Mecnanical engineer) is just back for a regional NSF Undergraduate Research Conference where he won one of two 1st places prizes ($500 and a handheld computer) for his presentation. The Condado Hilton and Casino is a glamorous place with a great view.
The IIT Admission's brochure announced our event and our Puerto Rican students did a number of phone-a-thones to alumns and prospective students just before the Christmas break. We had our open house in February this year inorder to piggy-back our reception on a "College Fair" conducted on the Island several times each year.
Mr. Auffant runs a program called "The Auffant College Connection" which is well known by local HS counselors. While we thought we might see more people this way, the drawback was our students were back in Chicago as break was over. The College Fair involved 20 Colleges and Universities sharing a large room. I handed out over 500 brochures and talked to half that number of students and parents over several hours.
I would have been swamped without the help of Mrs. Jimenez who manned the College Fair table as I set up the private reception which we scheduled to follow the College Fair. The private room was set up with 10 large round tables and was filled as we started introductions. The Quintana's hosted the reception while Mrs. Jimenez and I finished the first portion of the afternoon.
We were blessed with a number of successful alumns who seated themselves around the room so we would have a strong avocate at each table. The group shared stories of IIT, Chicago, and the great opportunities available at IIT. We covered the usual about housing, food, weather, security, and financial aid. It was a long but rewarding day.
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