Homecoming is a time of nostalgia.
For 126 years, the University of Idaho has provided a place for students to receive an education, but it also serves as a campus where a lot of great memories are made.
UI is about more than what happens in the classroom. This university has a rich history, and that shows in places like the stairs of the Administration Building, which are worn with the footprints of students who climbed them years before.
The hallways of academic buildings, Greek houses and residence halls are all places where many generations of students have made lasting memories and life-long friends – memories similar to what students are creating now.
While a lot of things have changed over the past 126 years, a lot has also stayed the same.
Homecoming Week is the perfect time for students – both past and present – to reminisce about their time at UI.
Alumnis” memories of their schooling may reach back further than current students, but today”s seniors have also built many memories from homecoming festivities since their freshman year.
This weekend, the campus will be populated by community members, alumni, faculty and staff. While homecoming may feel like a celebration for students, it”s important to remember it is for the visitors as much as it is for us.
The streets will be full of cars and pedestrians. Families will crowd restaurants and grocery store lines will be much longer than usual.
Even though lines at almost all of the local businesses may extend far past their usual points, students should not let the crowds ruin their homecoming experience. Homecoming is a great opportunity to relax after a week of midterms and learn more about UI from visiting alumni.
Current students represent UI today. It”s important to showcase the quality of UI to our homecoming guests. It”s our chance to show how our university has grown since they”ve left.
When alumni visit campus they should be able to remember fond memories as they walk around the campus, and they should feel welcomed by the place they left behind after graduation. It”s the obligation of the students to help uphold their memories by representing the university well.
While some things may have changed, help show returning alumni that the character and culture of the university they used to call home is still something to be proud of.
Homecoming is about more than the university in the present. It is about students, faculty and staff from today and back in the day coming together again. It”s about celebrating the legacy of UI.
Embrace the entire community this weekend. Know that homecoming isn”t about the parties or even the scheduled activities. It”s a chance to hear stories about what UI means to everyone who participates. Sometimes current students find that they share similar connections with the university that alumni do who graduated years before these students ever came to UI.
Homecoming is much more than meets the eye, and students can”t see that unless the embrace the community.
– KH