Embrace homecoming traditions

With Homecoming festivities already underway and even more fun to be had this weekend, it can be easy to think of it as just another week of the school year albeit more events similar to Welcome Weekend. However, we shouldn’t consider it another school week filled with cheesy events. This is the one week of the year when we can celebrate our school and have as much fun as we want. We should be embracing Homecoming traditions instead of not participating.

Homecoming is one of the best opportunities to meet others on our campus. Whether our dorms decide to go to one of the events or we sit with our friends by another group at the football game and strike up conversations, it’s a way for us to get to know others, potentially forming lifelong friendships. Even meeting alumni who return for the week of Homecoming can be a great way to hear new stories and potentially network with fellow Mavericks. 

Another reason is there are a variety of events to choose from. From the lip sync and coronation to the parade to the Homecoming concert, there is something for everyone. There’s no excuse to not attend at least one event. Several student groups throughout campus participate in these events or even host them, allowing us to get to know more organizations and the campus community. We may even find ourselves joining one of them by the time Homecoming is over.

Of course, the real reason we should be celebrating Homecoming is to celebrate the Maverick pride we have for the university! Homecoming unites the campus community by bringing students, faculty, staff and alumni together to share their memories and celebrate all the university has done for them. At Minnesota State, there’s so much we have to celebrate over the last few years. Our sports teams have reached new heights, including the Men’s and Women’s DII National Basketball Championships. Students and faculty had outstanding research displayed at the Undergraduate Research Symposium. Most of all, MSU was voted the “Best University” by the Star Tribune’s Minnesota’s Best poll for the fourth year in a row! With several great plans ahead for MSU, it’s a time for us to see how far the university has come, celebrate its current accomplishments, all the while looking forward to what the future holds. 

So instead of dismissing Homecoming as a week with too many decorations and events that seem cliche, embrace them. It will be part of some of your fondest memories when you graduate and may be one of the reasons we return to campus years down the road. Whether you attend every event or can only make it out to one or two of them, take time to honor MSU and all the hard work accomplished by everyone. If there’s ever a time to celebrate the #MavFam, it’s this one week. Roll Mavs!