Aerospace engineering

We dropped E off at University of Illinois-Champaign today for the weeklong GAMES Camp, a girls-only engineering camp. She's going to be studying aerospace engineering and, if the weather cooperates, will get to go up in a small airplane and possibly steer it! They'll also be making rockets, using wind tunnels and visiting the fire department at the airport. The instructor in charge said he's not sure why they tour the fire department, but it's really cool.

E is staying in the Illinois Street residence hall. She's staying in the low-rise building on the right of the picture. You can see it behind the trees if you squint. Andy thought it was kind of funny that the aerospace girls were given rooms on the first floor. Shouldn't they be up higher? Her roommate is a fellow OPRF student, but a girl she doesn't really know. I hope they get along and have some fun together. I didn't realize it has been three years since she's been at U of I for the engineering camp. She went there last year for a golf camp, but I guess she didn't go at all in 2011. Maybe we had too much going on with her entering high school?

Here's E making up her bed. The dorm rooms at ISU weren't great, but these are so small and drab. I wish I could see one when students are actually living in it during the year. It has to look better.

After we checked E in to the camp, we did a little shopping. E got a couple of T-shirts and L had to get a couple. L found this crazy thing:

At first she had it on around her waist like a tutu and I told her she looked ridiculous. Then she looked at the picture on the tag - it goes around your head. I could imagine some crazy college students wearing those to cheer on the Illini.

Before we were able to leave E in the care of her counselors, we had to attend the welcoming ceremony in Lincoln Hall. It recently underwent a renovation project and is so ornate. Look at the ceiling:

Kind of hard to believe it's a college lecture hall/theater space. After the presentation, we went into a classroom where the instructor gave us a brief commercial for U of I (like E needs that!) and an overview of the what the girls will be doing for the week. The camp's slogan is "Girls Rock." Yes, they do!