Students on the windy shores of Lake Michigan at a Wisconsin university have the pleasure of leaving their coats in their dorms and taking a much cozier trek as compared to Midwestern college students who are piling on layers to brave the frigid walk to classes in subzero weather, the Associated Press reported.
Concordia University Wisconsin has nearly 4 miles of connecting tunnels and hallways that keep students out of the harsh winter elements. The elaborate underground system connects residence halls and academic buildings.
"Actually, it's pretty funny to see students walking around campus in flip flops and shorts," during the winter, said university spokesman Craig McCarthy.
Before Concordia bought the University in 1982, the School Sisters of Notre Dame owned the 200-acre lakefront property, according to McCarthy.
The Lutheran university, north of Milwaukee in the suburb of Mequon, has added to the maze of tunnels when constructing new buildings, including the School of Pharmacy, which opened in 2011, the AP reported.
"Honestly, I haven't been outside in two days," said junior Lindsey Weber, a resident assistant at Augsburg Hall. "It's been nice with the semester starting back up. Everybody has been able to stay warm unless they're a commuter or had to go out for something."
With about 7,900 graduate and undergraduate students from 46 states and 28 foreign countries enrolled at the University, the tunnels can get a bit crowded at times, Weber, 21, of Colgate, Wis., said.
"It turns into like rush hour on the freeway," Weber said. "Everybody just lines up and goes."
In a list of the 21 coldest colleges in the country, the private, liberal arts school ranks 13, according to the website College Prowler, a resource for student reviews, majors and scholarships. "The ranking is based on student reviews of weather, average high and low temperatures and average precipitation in summer and winter, the website says," the AP reported.
The university is a member of Concordia University System, a nationwide network of colleges and universities, the AP reported.
Lawrence Sohn, 76, who maintains the university's archives, said the nuns used to navigate the long tunnels before the cement floor of the underground maze was conducive to bikes and roller skates.
"This was all the sisters' idea in the first place," Sohn said.
Clustered in the middle of the sprawling property with parking lots and roads encircling the buildings, twenty-two of the 23 buildings on campus are connected, the AP reported.
The university used the tunnels in a promotional campaign several years ago, telling prospective students they could "come to class in shorts in January," Sohn said.
"The nice thing is," Weber said, "we never have to put away our summer clothes."
