October’s the month to celebrate tradition

‘ ‘ ‘ The posters come up. The voting begins. People plan the tailgate parties. Pitt’s ready… ‘ ‘ ‘ The posters come up. The voting begins. People plan the tailgate parties. Pitt’s ready to celebrate homecoming, which it will mark with its 15th annual fireworks and laser show, among other traditions. ‘ ‘ ‘ Pitt is not alone. October is the preferred month for homecoming festivities across the nation, and many universities strive to hold unique and rousing festivities that will engage their campuses. Regardless of the nuances, almost every university has three things in common: football, a king and a queen. ‘ ‘ ‘ And while football is a frequent focus event for homecoming celebrations, many institutions create events that their students, alumni, fans and community can appreciate.’ At West Virginia University, the various schools host open houses for the community and for alumni that return with their families. The ‘Midnight Madness’ event gives participants a chance to meet and greet the men’s and women’s basketball teams. Fraternities and sororities host individual games and competitions, including a banner contest, to inspire student involvement. Officials close several city streets for a parade. ‘ ‘ ‘ Each year, the floats and banners are designed to illustrate a particular theme. Marlon LeBlanc, the men’s soccer coach, created this year’s ‘One WVU’ theme. According to the university’s Web site, the slogan is part of an effort to appreciate diversity and holds that the only colors that should matter on campus are blue and gold. ‘ ‘ ‘ But the parade seems to win the popularity contest among homecoming events. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘All the fraternities and sororities really come together and make it a fun event for everyone, and Morgantown loves a parade,’ said Kim Harrison, the assistant director of WVU’s Student Organization Services. ‘ ‘ ‘ State College also loves a parade. Pennsylvania State University’s street invasion has taken the forefront of the school’s major homecoming events. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘It’s one of the biggest parades in the country, and it’s just become a pretty standard celebration for us,’ said the homecoming public relations director, Donavan Hunt. ‘ ‘ ‘ Every year, parade participants build floats in recognition of a specific theme. This year’s theme was ‘Inspired by Tradition.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘A lot of what we do every year is really rooted in the past, and we wanted to focus all of our planning in our traditions,’ said Hunt. ‘ ‘ ‘ But the theme and the competitions extend beyond the parade. In fact, overall competition for homecoming events has become so intense at Penn State that registration for participation begins in late spring. ‘ ‘ ‘ Each group also creates its own spin-off theme by which to inspire its decorations.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ In addition to the parade, participants may compete in an ‘Airband’ lip-sync and dance competition, the ‘Nittany Pursuit’ campus-wide scavenger hunt and ‘Band Bash.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘Band Bash’ has also made a name for itself on campus. The event pits three student bands against each other. The winner earns a chance to play at the university’s spring dance marathon, which Hunt said is the ‘largest student-run philanthropy in the world.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Each year, Penn State manages an influx of tens of thousands of people for homecoming, said Hunt, and attendees may also include students from other universities, like Pitt. ‘ ‘ ‘ J.J. Abbott, executive board director for Pitt Program Council, said he is disappointed that Pitt’s campus wouldn’t allow for a Penn State-style parade. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘I’ve been to the Penn State homecoming,’ said Abbott. ‘The parade is cool, and it’s great how they get so many students involved ‘hellip; sadly it’s just not practical to do in an urban setting.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ While the lack of a parade might be a slight disappointment to some in the Pittsburgh area, the school makes up for it in other ways: like fireworks, and the newest tradition of panther-painting. ‘ ‘ ‘ In what Abbott calls Pitt’s ‘newest homecoming tradition,’ various student groups and campus organizations apply for permission to paint a fiberglass panther representative of the group and its mission. This year’s panthers were unveiled on Wednesday and are currently on display in the William Pitt Union’s jazz room. ‘ ‘ ‘ In addition to the panthers and pyrotechnic display, Friday night will also see the annual Monte Carlo event in the Union’s Assembly Room, a mock-casino night that Abbott said Program Council took over from the Family Weekend portion of homecoming. ‘ ‘ ‘ Abbott expects between 750 and 1,000 people to participate. It is free for the public, but the prizes will vary for students and others. This year’s prizes include a Playstation 3, a Rockband set and an iPod Touch. ‘ ‘ ‘ Also new this year is the location for the annual homecoming ball. The ball will be held on Saturday evening in Soldiers and Sailors Memorial, as opposed to on the usual Gateway Clipper cruise boats. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘There were some scheduling conflicts, and we looked at other locations for the same idea,’ said Abbott, ‘but then we just decided that an on-campus event would be better, and increase the options for the people that have come into town just for homecoming.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Before the game, the Program Council and Pitt Athletics will again co-sponsor the ‘Great Lawn Tailgate,’ which provides students with the opportunity to buy food and rent a grill for every home game. Local radio DJ Bonics of the Kiss 96.1 radio station will provide entertainment, said Abbott.