The first week of classes has come and gone. Honestly, since I have been taking summer classes both sessions, I really did not feel the anxiety of starting classes again in the fall. The only aspect of the new semester that I still need some getting used to is not seeing some of familiar MPAs’ faces in classes anymore. Many of my classmates from the class of 2009 have graduated during the summer and moved on to conquering Corporate America, and I will miss them dearly. However, their absence reminds me that I should truly enjoy Austin while I am still here, especially while some ’09 MPAs are staying until December. We have grand (and not-so-grand, but fun regardless) plans in the making, so I am looking forward to the next few months.

The new semester also means new faces. Since I missed some of my core courses in the MPA program due to the spring internship, I am now in classes with many new traditional MPAs. It is definitely exciting to meet new people and to feel the enthusiasm of the new academic year. I am sure that it will be another successful MPA class. Hello! MPA Class of 2010, and I hope you are up for the challenge ☺

Some pictures from our end-of-summer-school Vegas trip:

Good bye and good luck, Jie, Fiona, and Kan!