DGS Grad Profile: Why Courtney Conrad Chose Western Michigan

Eighteen-year-old Courtney Conrad just graduated from . She's working this summer as a life guard at She plans to attend Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, MI in the fall.

She lives with her family in Darien. 

Q: What activities did you participate in at Downers Grove South?

A: I played volleyball all four years, and I was on varsity for the last two years. I was on girls' track - indoor and outdoor. Same as volleyball, I was on varsity for the last two years.

I was also in lots of different activities. I was in Snowball (a program focused on character development and teamwork skills) for all four years. I was a participant for the first two and a leader for the last two.

I also did Mad Dash. It’s freshman orientation at the beginning of the year. I went as a freshman and then led my sophomore and junior year and then directed my senior year. 

I was in ACE all four years – that’s Athletes Committed to Excellence.

I was in NHS (National Honor Society) my junior and senior year and same with Spanish Honor Society.

The last thing I did was Superfan Club. Started by one of the seniors this year, it basically was a group of students – we came up with different themes for each game. The basketball and football games were the biggest. We also tried to get groups of students to go to different events because a lot of times people would only go to the big basketball or football games and they wouldn’t cheer on track or golf.

We’re trying to continue it. Most of the members were all seniors – there were two juniors that went to everything so hopefully they’ll keep it going. A lot of the teams did a lot better than normal because they had so much support.

Q: What did you enjoy the most?

A: I enjoyed everything. My favorite is definitely Snowball. But the one thing I liked about doing a huge variety of things is that I met a ton of people who I’m still best friends with. We all came from different parts so I’d be sad if I didn’t do any one of them. But Snowball was definitely my favorite because it helped me learn more about myself and become a stronger leader.

Q: What’s the best thing you learned during your four years of high school?

A: I’d probably say the best thing I learned, and I don’t know if I learned it from anybody but just through experience, is that you can honestly do whatever you put your mind to. But it doesn’t just come easily, you have to put yourself through hard work and thinking positively can also greatly affect what you strive for. I’d say that’s what I took from high school.

Q: Why did you decide to go to Western Michigan University?

A: Last summer when I first started looking at colleges, I started late, and I had no idea where I wanted to go. So I used Naviance, which is a website that helps you kind of narrow down your choices. So I put in all the information that I wanted out of a college. I wanted it to be co-ed; I wanted it to have elementary education; and other than that I just kept my options open.

So Western Michigan came up on that list along with a few others. I researched a lot so I didn’t have to visit 500 colleges. I ended up applying to ten colleges, which is a lot more than normal students do. U of I (University of Illinois) was one of the big picks; I applied there and Michigan State because I thought they would be similar.

Then I found out that I didn’t like huge schools – I wanted a medium school. After I visited all the colleges I applied to, my favorite colleges were Western Michigan and Marquette. They have a big difference in size. Marquette is 8,000 (students)  and Western Michigan is 20,000 (students). I liked both the campuses a lot.

I applied for two really big scholarships and I ended up getting the one at Western Michigan. So that was a big push towards Western Michigan because it would be a lot cheaper.

Another thing was, I knew a lot of people going to Marquette and I only know two other people going to Western Michigan. I really wanted to go somewhere where I could not really start over because I love all the people, but just kind of be off on my own and see how I do. So that was another push towards Western so in the end, it felt right to go there.

Q: What are you going to major in?

A: Right now, elementary education but I’m open to other options. I’m not really set on one thing. I took an Intro to Teaching class this year at Downers Grove South. It takes up two periods and you get to go to an elementary school and help out in the classroom. I helped out in a kindergarten class. I loved doing it but I’m still open to other options.

Q: What summer activities are you involved in?

A: I’m a lifeguard at the Woodridge pool (Cypress Cove Family Aquatic Park). This will be my third summer.  So that takes up a lot of time, especially now going to college, I’m working a lot more trying to make more money.

I’m also going to be a counselor at a camp in July. It’s a five-day camp called LifeRide and they just started sending people from around here through Snowball. I went last year and I’m real excited because this year. I get to lead one of the groups.

Q: What are your favorite things about spending summer in the suburbs?

A: I definitely enjoy hanging out with friends. So that’s nice because we don’t have any really terrible weather. It’s not like it’s extremely hot here or freezing. It’s nice to just be able to hang outside.

I love going to the pool because I get in for free so I can go there on my days off. It’s about trying to even out my one-piece tan line. You get a really white stomach so that’s the motive behind that.

The one thing that’s really nice about Woodridge or Darien is that I’m familiar with it. I’ve lived here since I was in fifth grade. I used to live in Forest Park. Darien is a lot safer than my old town was.

I like running now. I started that freshman year. So when I go to run, it’s a lot easier going on my own than it would have been in that community. When I go for a jog in the morning, I feel safe.