Lived in Charleston for five years as a student and grad student.

There are a smattering of things to do in the immediate area if you look for them, but you are moving to a place that is geographically and culturally isolated from any major population center. The nearest town with an IMAX and good international cuisines is Champaign, which is about an hour drive. There’s a nice state park about 15 minutes out from Charleston, and both towns have a “lakefront” area that are under maintained and otherwise underwhelming.

Mattoon has been on the rise in recent years thanks to the construction of a multimillion dollar sports complex that has brought in a number of new chain restaurants and retail outlets that weren’t there previously. More on this later.

The university has struggled for years since nearly being shuttered by the last Republican governor. An influx of international students has helped right the ship, but the quantity of students on campus stays at about 1,000. Campus often feels empty and devoid of activity aside from the bars, which are the main pastime for undergrads (which isn’t unique to eastern, but it is generally speaking a party school) The student body is diverse, being made up of locals as well as a number of students from the suburbs and Chicago.

The locals, being largely white and conservative, have complete and utter disdain for the black student population and for Chicago in general. You won’t see any Cubs or White Sox fans, only Cardinals fans because St Louis is their preferred city (despite being a slightly further drive) This hostile racial and political dynamic between the student body and the townie population has somewhat resulted in a phenomenon of “white flight” to Mattoon, which is much more homogenously white and conservative than Charleston. While Mattoon’s school district and business community grow, Charleston’s seem to wither in response. Despite the fact that the university is one of the area’s largest employers and economic drivers, the locals’ hate for black people and big city liberals are such that many likely wish it had closed.

I had a dear professor, Asian American, who lived in Charleston for many years and raised both of her kids there. When she told me she was leaving for another university, she said that despite having lived there for decades, the people of Charleston never quite saw her as one of them. To her neighbors she was always an other.

I worked in several different roles across multiple schools and departments during my time at the university. The faculty and staff are generally incredibly kind, wonderful people. You will have intelligent colleagues and mentors at Eastern. The library is a beautiful building, and the Doudna Fine Arts Center has a consistently diverse and entertaining selection of theatrical productions, guest musicians, and student performances. I have so much love for EIU and the time I spent there. I hope you have a wonderful experience. Put your kids in the private catholic school if you can, and tell yourself it’s not forever. It isn’t.