Here we are again. It’s homecoming y’all! It’s time for a concert and coronation, football and Founder’s Day. As my last homecoming as a student, I hope to enjoy everything offered this year, but what people on campus don’t seem to understand is that homecoming isn’t technically for us.
Homecoming is the celebration of alumni coming home to their alma mater. SGA does a good job of making sure students enjoy and participate in homecoming activities, but most events are for alumni such as banquets and balls.
Students have the wrong idea about being alumni. Too many times I’ve heard “What has this school done for me?” and “Why should I give back?”
Let me tell you why. Think about your time here. Think about how it affected your life. As a mass communications major, I want to give back so that future mass comm. majors won’t have the same technology issues that I had and students can continue to be in charge of the University media outlets. I want to give back so students that want to study performing arts at an HBCU don’t have to go to Arkansas to do it. I want performance groups to have funds for costumes and workshops. I want homecoming concerts that can appeal to every person in the student body.
Think about what you will remember most about your time at WSSU. Whether it is the road to your degree, your best friend or significant other or the extracurricular activities you participated in. It has had some effect. Think about where you might be if you didn’t attend.
This year’s homecoming website asks “What does being Ramitized mean to you?” I’ve heard different responses about Ramitization, but it’s not just going through Freshman Orientation or Ramdition.
My freshman year I was not Ramitized. I went home every chance I got, barely owned any WSSU paraphernalia and went to one football game.
I was Ramitized my third year. I started going to all the football games, stood up and danced every time the Red Sea of Sound played “Get Up,”wore red almost everywhere and added a WSSU Rams license plate frame to my car.
I think being a proud alumna and being Ramitized go hand in hand. In order to be productive alumni we had to have had a Ramitizing experience while we were students.
I am having a great experience at WSSU and if I can help a future Ram have the same experience or better, then I will do my part as an alumna of WSSU.
Welcome back alumni and have a Ramitizing Experience.