Forever Home: Stacey Macchi

University News

Forever Home: Stacey Macchi

October 2, 2018

Share |

Video by Phil Weiss, University Television

NOTE: This is the second installment in a series, "Forever Home," which features video interviews with WIU alumni who have chosen to make Macomb (and/or WIU) their home after graduation.

Forever Home: Stacey Macchi

MACOMB, IL – For Assistant Professor of Communication Stacey Macchi, a chance visit to the Western Illinois University campus as a high school student has developed into a passion for her alma mater and her adopted community that she is passing down to the students in her classroom each semester.

Macchi received her bachelor's degrees from WIU in communication and political science in 2001 and her master's degree in communication in 2003. After leaving town for just over one year to work in the private sector, Macchi returned after being hired as a faculty member in 2004 with the WIU Department of Communication.

Before beginning her Western adventure, Macchi lived more than 150 miles from campus and happened upon a WIU Admissions representative at her high school.

"I hadn't really thought about Western up until that point," she said. "I knew I wanted to go to a state school, and in high school I lived about two and a half hours away. So, a friend of mine and I decided to take a road trip (to Macomb) one day. We learned a lot, we went on a campus tour, and when I was here for that visit, that is what sold me on Western. There was just a feeling I got when I was here – I said to myself, 'I know this is my place.'"

During her freshman year, it was her communication courses Macchi said helped guide her career path. She admits to being drawn to the academic discipline early and loving the lessons she learned.

"I understood the material…it made sense to me; I said, 'I can do this,'" said Macchi. "We have to communicate with people in every aspect and facet of our lives, and I said 'I need to learn more about this – this is what I want to do.'"

Macchi said as a student she immersed herself in being involved in campus life at Western to get the best college experience she could.

"It really changed me, as a person, for the better," she said. "I learned so much about myself; I learned about the world, and how it works, and I learned to formulate my own opinions on things and to be able to describe and to justify the opinion I had for things. There's just something to be said about being appreciative of the opportunities you've been given. I didn't necessarily know it at the time, but Western was my future. Not only did I understand that it was preparing me for my future, but Western really was my future in so many different ways."

After finishing her degrees, Macchi was recruited to work in retail management away from Macomb, but she quickly learned that she missed working with students and helping them navigate their future.

"While I was using the skills I learned here, I missed being in a classroom," she said. "There was just something so amazing about being in front of a group of students and helping them to figure out who they were going to become and why these skills were so important and how they can use these to better their lives and the lives of other people."

During her interview for the faculty position at Western, Macchi was asked to do a teaching demonstration, which she said was done in front of most of the faculty she had taken undergraduate and graduate courses from. After being offered the position, Macchi said she was thrilled to be back in Macomb, a town she said she gets sentimental about.

As a child, Macchi's family moved about every two years because of her father's job. While new places and new friends were exciting, and helped her develop her communication skills, it wasn't until she came to Macomb that she spent more than two years in any one place. Furthering her connection to the community and the campus, Macchi met her husband, David, at Western and he proposed to her on campus.

"Macomb is just my place," she said. "I feel a sense of pride when I think about Western. It helped me figure out who I wanted to be, what I wanted to do with my life. I felt like all of my life I was being pulled back to Macomb for those few years I was away. Macomb is my home – this is my happy place."

There are a variety of reasons Macchi can give for her attachment to Macomb, including the friendliness of the people and the community atmosphere.

For much of her time as a faculty member at Western, Macchi has been heavily involved in the University's First Year Experience (FYE) program (which helps students acclimate to college) both as an instructor in FYE courses, as well as a faculty associate for the FYE program.

"I was a first-generation college student," she said. "I came to Western not really knowing how colleges work. When I came, I just jumped right in and kind of figured it out. Having gone through that, and lived through that, I know how important it is to really help those students who are coming from all kinds of different places, whether it's being in a home with a single parent, being a first-generation college student or being a student who is coming back from the military. Being able to be a person who can help a first-year student understand the process, understand how to succeed, I can't even describe how rewarding that is."

Through the UNIV 100 classes, students are challenged to learn about their campus, as well as the community. Macchi said that the Campus and Community Exploration assignment these assignment is important because students are citizens of not only the campus, but also the community.

"I want them to know about this great place that we call home," she said. "For nine months out of the year, it's their home too."

Macchi also encourages her students to get involved on campus and in the community as a way to enhance their college experience as well as to keep them focused on finishing their education.

One of the programs Macchi and a colleague developed 10 years ago for students in the Department of Communication is Career Preparation Day. The event draws alumni back to campus to talk with current students about career planning and the steps they need to take to be prepared for life after Western.

"Ten years later, we still have a full slate of alumni who come back and volunteer their time to help make a difference in the lives of our current students," she said.

Macchi's bubbly personality exudes pride in WIU, which she hopes is indicative of her experiences over the past nearly 20 years.

"I know that in the classroom, when I talk to my students about Western, they can see the passion, they can see the pride and that rubs off on them. I think it's almost contagious in a way," she said. "When I get really excited about Western, I start talking a little bit faster and my voice gets a little bit higher. It's just that energy and excitement because Western changed my life and I want it to do the same for my students."

For more information about the WIU Department of Communication, visit wiu.edu/communication.