According to many Winona State University graduates, Winona is a great city, both to go to school in and to live in. WSU graduates have a trend of staying in Winona and living here after graduation, but why is this?
To answer this question, I spoke to multiple WSU students and graduates, the first of whom was Cassie Bauer (a graduated film student). When asked why she thinks she and many others chose to stay in Winona she answered with the following response.
“I just think that the art scene in Winona is really strong for people who have more creative majors and minors, and it makes a lot of sense to stay,” Bauer said.
This makes a lot of sense; Winona has an amazing art scene. With the Minnesota Marine Art Museum, the Frozen River Film Festival and the Winona Arts Center among many other places, there is no shortage of fun places and events for art lovers. This also means that since many art lovers are here in Winona for these things, they also get to meet each other and form a community.
Additionally, Bauer emphasized the nature here in Winona. And she’s totally right, because with beautiful bluffs to admire and hike, like Garvin Heights and Sugarloaf, beautiful waking trails and beaches to enjoy and places like the Lake Lodge to make the most out of nature with things such as bike rentals, kayak or canoe rentals, and other things like disk golf and hammock rentals, you can always find a way to enjoy nature in Winona.
The next person I spoke to was Keaton Riebel, a fourth year here at WSU. Riebel is deciding to stay in the Winona area after graduation.
“I decided to stay in Winona last summer. My partner and I lived together for part of last summer, and I realized I liked a lot of the jobs around here more than in the cities and could be more easily connected with opportunities since I have networked here more than back home,” Riebel said.
Riebel additionally emphasized the potential reasonings behind many graduates stay in Winona after their college career has ended.
“I think a lot of it has to do with networking and building your education here. It makes sense we would have more opportunities since our education is built here and our professors are connected to people and businesses around here,” Riebel said.
Her answers also make a lot of sense. Considering Winona is a college town, there are a lot of jobs here that cater to college graduates. It also makes sense that there would be jobs here for the more prominent majors on campus, making it just make sense for lots of graduates to stay local. And, because we have about 4 years to make connections here in Winona, of course, that sometimes leads to job opportunities in the area.
To conclude, Winona is a great place to go to school and to live, and many WSU students and graduates would agree. Whether it’s the art scene, the nature, the job opportunities or the community you’ve built, there are many reasons to stay in Winona well after you’ve graduated.
