College Traditions

Holiday Celebrations Across College Campuses

The winter holiday season is filled with celebrations, special foods, and beautiful decorations. Whether you celebrate Hanukkah, the Winter Solstice, Christmas, Kwanzaa, or other holidays, this time of year is marked by traditions at home and at school. Last year we highlighted some of our favorite college Thanksgiving traditions, so this year we are highlighting some of our favorite winter holiday celebrations on college campuses across the country!

CHRISTMAS ON 5TH, BAYLOR UNIVERSITY

From Christmas carols to the tree lighting, students and members of the Waco, Texas community will fill the center of campus in celebration of Baylor’s traditional Christmas on 5th. They can enjoy food trucks, arts and crafts, pictures with Santa and Mrs. Claus, and other holiday activities supported by many student organizations. The festivities include performances ranging from live Nativity scenes to The Nutcracker to Holiday Carols from Around the World by the Department of Modern Languages & Cultures, and culminate in a Christmas tree lighting and concert.

KWANZAA AND FEAST OF FAITH, NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY

The African American Cultural Center at NC State invites students for an early celebration of Kwanzaa and the Feast of Faith, taking place before final exams as Kwanzaa falls during winter break. NC State teaches the principles of Kwanzaa, which include unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith. In this special event, the community finds new ways to focus on Black resilience, innovation, and joy!

CHANUKAH IN THE SQUARE, COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON

Students at the College of Charleston gather to recognize the Festival of Lights in Marion Square with the annual Chanukah in the Square, the largest Jewish celebration in South Carolina. Sponsored by the city and the school, everyone is invited to enjoy live music and food ranging from traditional hot latkes to kettle corn. Students can also take part in the 16th annual lighting of the giant menorah!

CHRISTMAS ON CAMPUS, UNIVERSITY OF DAYTON

For 60 years, the University of Dayton community has held Christmas on Campus. Student organizations host activities ranging from a carnival with activities sponsored by fraternities and sororities to performances from campus dance, music, and demonstration group. There’s also ornament making, cookie decorating, pictures with Santa, and more! But UD students don’t just celebrate: they buddy up with over 1,000 local children from the Dayton City Schools to explore and enjoy. 

LATKAPALOOZA, DUKE UNIVERSITY

Duke students celebrate Latkapalooza each year at the start of Hanukkah. This fun event includes a candle lighting with traditional Jewish prayers, latkes, and even a jelly doughnut-eating contest! Co-sponsored by the Jewish Student Union and Jewish Life at Duke, all students are welcome to play the Dreidel game and try latkes, a pancake-like traditional dish made from potatoes.

YULE LOG CELEBRATION, WILLIAM & MARY

At the annual Yule Log Celebration of peace, joy and gratitude, students and alumni gather to enjoy music and singing; a reading of traditional poems; and, for good luck, the tossing of holly sprigs into the fireplace. If you’re in a different city, you can still participate - check out the Yule Log gatherings across the country for alumni, families, and friends of the school. There’s even an option for those who can’t celebrate in person at all: William & Mary provides a live feed of the festivities in Williamsburg, along with videos of the fireplace and recipes for the traditional cakes, cookies, and cinnamon rolls.

Happy Holidays!

We've Got the Spirit! Homecoming Histories and Traditions

Fall is officially in the air, and we’re enjoying pumpkin carves, apple picking, and football games. But there’s one fall tradition that stands out among the rest: homecoming! Over the next month, many high schools and universities across the country will be celebrating with pep rallies, spirit days, and most importantly, sports games. Students will dress up in silly costumes, participate in crazy relays, and maybe even get crowned as head of homecoming. It makes you wonder: who exactly started this tradition and why? 

Well, historians don’t know exactly who started homecoming, but they have traced the earliest celebrations back to the 1910s. Schools such as Baylor and Missouri invited alumni to “come home” during a fall weekend. Activities included a big football game, a pep rally, and speeches. The goal was to connect alumni with current students and encourage more school pride.

These early homecoming festivities were so much fun they became a staple on college campuses…and even spread to high school campuses as well. Many schools have created signature events as part of their homecoming festivities that act as a rite-of-passage for students and a moment of nostalgia for alumni. There are bonfires and parades, as well as creative twists on classic activities. For example, students at Texas State University compete every year in the homecoming soap box derby, proudly representing their residence halls or Greek organizations. And the entire community at ASU hikes the “A” mountain in the dark, using their lanterns to light the pathways. 

Yet some colleges and universities don’t stop at midnight hikes and car races. They “up the ante” on homecoming shenanigans. At Ball State University, you can find undergrads racing down the pathways on mattresses as part of their annual bed race. And at Howard University, alumni aren’t the only invited guests. In the past, headliners like Drake and Kanye West have appeared on campus to perform in Howard’s very own music festival, Yard Fest. 

To honor the spirit of homecoming, we’ve curated a collection of ‘stand out’ college homecoming traditions across America.

Getting Wet and Wild

Students at University of Central Florida gear up every year for what has been recognized as one of the best college campus traditions in the nation: Spirit Splash. The concept is seemingly simple. Rush the reflecting pond and try to catch a rubber duck. But the crowds, the sun and the splash can make it a tough task. That’s why undergrads are encouraged to ‘pay it forward’ if they catch an extra duck. In past years, the event has been streamed live on Youtube. So if you’re interested in seeing this tradition for yourself, tune in on October 28.

White Out

“We are…!” Penn State is well known for its popular ‘we are’ chant and school spirit. And during homecoming week, this enthusiasm is even more apparent thanks to a game day white out. Penn State fans are instructed to wear only white to Beaver Stadium as the ultimate act of school pride. Why white? Well, this tradition started in the early 2000s when fans were trying to increase support for the football team. At first, it was just a small student section of white t-shirts but has grown into a stunning display that fills the stadium. You can see this year’s White Out on October 22 when Penn State plays Minnesota.

THE Rivalry

For over 150 years, the Lehigh and Lafayette football teams have battled it out on the football field. The rivalry has become so infamous that it gets its very own week at Lehigh University. Students decorate their residences with ‘bedsheet’ banners and take part in bed races, runs, and luncheons throughout the week. Alumni across the country are also encouraged to get involved from afar by hosting alumni telecasts on game day.

A Charitable Take on Homecoming

It’s not just fun and games at University of Missouri’s homecoming weekend. With so many people descending on campus, the Alumni Association has leveraged the community to support a blood drive. It’s become the largest student-run blood drive in the country, and each year the university donates thousands of units to the Red Cross.

The Biggest Party Around

The University of Florida is known for hosting the largest pep rally in the US: Gator Growl. For almost 100 years, students and alumni have come together to show off their blue and orange pride. In the early days, the event was a classic pep rally leading up to the homecoming football game. But now Gator Growl is quite the spectacle. It takes hundreds of employees, volunteers, and student coordinators to pull off the complex showcase of fireworks and musical performances. It’s all worth it, though. The big event also helps fundraise for important charities.

An American History Lesson: College Admissions Style

The Fourth of July is near, and to honor our country’s independence day, we’re taking a step back into American history– college admissions style. Let’s take a look at some of the colleges and universities that play an important role in our nation’s past.

The College of William & Mary

It’s no surprise that The College of William & Mary is steeped in American history. After all, it’s the second-oldest higher education institution in the United States, having received its official charter in 1693. During the revolutionary war, W&M- located in the colonial capital of Virginia- found itself at the center of key battles. The college was even forced to cancel classes when the British invaded Williamsburg. Students were so impassioned by the fight for freedom, they formed a militia. Now there’s an extracurricular club we haven’t heard of before!  

Despite the chaos of the revolutionary era, enrollment did not drop. Future presidents Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, and John Tyler attended W&M, and George Washington earned his Surveyor’s License here.

Harvard University

Harvard isn’t just one of the most prestigious universities in America- it also happens to be the oldest (founded in 1636). Like William & Mary, it has a unique place in the birth of America. When the first shots of the Revolutionary War were fired at the nearby towns of Lexington and Concord, Harvard’s campus was converted into temporary housing for soldiers. According to The Harvard Gazette, students rented rooms in Concord and classes were held in local buildings, like the courthouse. In 1776, undergrads returned to the Cambridge campus, and the university awarded the town of Concord a small sum for its collegiate inconvenience. 

Since then, Harvard has continued to make history, educating more future presidents than any other college or university in the country: Barack Obama, Rutherford Hayes, George W. Bush, John F. Kennedy, Franklin Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt, John Quincy Adams, and John Adams are all alumni!

The University of Pennsylvania

Benjamin Franklin may be famous for inventing bifocals, but his creations didn’t stop there. A champion for education, this founding father wrote Proposals Relating to the Education of Youth in Pensilvania–a catalyst for what would become the University of Pennsylvania. Franklin served as president at Penn for a time, and even 232 years after his death, he still watches over students. In fact, you can visit him yourself next time you’re on campus. Look for the big statue in front of College Hall.

The University of Virginia

They say it “takes a village” to raise a child. Thomas Jefferson felt the same way about college undergrads. He conceived of higher education as a village- a place where students and faculty could live, learn, and contribute to a common good. This idea may not sound radical by our twenty-first century standards, but at the time, Jefferson’s vision broke the academic mold.

Of course, such a community couldn’t be achieved with just curriculum or classrooms. The physical campus needed to reflect the ideals of the school, which led Jefferson to take the lead planning and designing the campus.  He wasn’t a formally trained architect, but that didn’t stop Jefferson. Years of passionate self-study gave him the confidence and inspiration he needed. We think Jefferson’s initiative would make the perfect blueprint for a college admissions essay!

George Washington University

Don’t let the name fool you! George Washington University wasn’t actually founded by George Washington. He just came up with the idea–sort of! Washington envisioned a national university set right in the heart of America’s capital. Unfortunately, he didn’t live to see the university become a reality, but Washington never gave up on the dream. He set aside stocks and land grants for the creation of educational institutions in his will. Twenty-two years after Washington’s death, President James Monroe signed the Act of Congress which led to the establishment of the university.

Hampton University

Betsy Ross, the Great Depression, 9/11–there are so many famous figures and events in American history. But what about the untold stories? The University Archives at Hampton University revives lost voices through its extensive materials. In fact, it hails one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of African American and Native American history. According to the school’s website, there are currently over eight million artifacts for researchers to study.

Shepherd University

Some schools archive American history, but Shepherd University makes it come to life with its Civil War Semester. Students can take advantage of Shepherd’s proximity to “Civil War Country” by immersing themselves in four-months of dynamic hands-on studies. Opportunities include visiting famous historical sites, collaborating with museums, and publishing archival information. But that’s not all! Make sure you pack your hoop skirt or waistcoat because there’s also a chance to partake in a local civil war performance.

Saint Anselm College

How does a small liberal arts college become one of the biggest hubs for American history and politics? Location, location, location! Saint Anselm College is conveniently situated in New Hampshire- a state known for “making or breaking” presidential hopefuls. For decades, the college has hosted presidential debates and an impressive list of influential political figures. 

However, politicians and pundits are the only ones flocking to campus. Many undergrads are drawn to Saint Anselm’s politics department for its unique opportunities. Through a partnership with the New Hampshire Institute of Politics, students can find themselves conducting voter polls and moderating political Q&As with national figures.

UC Berkeley

Eager to become an expert in American history? Well, then you might want to head west. UC Berkeley is home to one of the best American history graduate programs in America. According to their department website, faculty research covers “almost the entirety of recorded history,” and students can choose from fifteen fields of historical study. Just don’t go booking your ticket yet: historically speaking, admissions to this program has been highly selective!

Happy Fourth!