Collegian file photo.
RYANN BAHNLINE | STAFF REPORTER | rbahnline@butler.edu
Homecoming is happening again on Butler’s campus, but with some significant changes. Yell like Hell, lawn decs and the parade are not happening, but students hope this year will be reminiscent of a typical homecoming.
Doug Benedict, coordinator, student activities, has been overseeing the University Programming Council, and this year, he is a part of a committee for the general planning of homecoming.
“It’s like we’re in a blitz kind of situation…we’re also like on a crunch timeline,” Benedict said. “And I think what the biggest change this year was … kind of determining where we can put the most effort and most value. If that means leaving certain things out to make other things better, that’s the conversation.”
One of the largest changes that has been made with homecoming this year is the omission of events such as Yell Like Hell, lawn decs and the parade due to the tight time frame. In years past, Greek houses and residence halls would pair up to perform in Hinkle Fieldhouse for Yell Like Hell and decorate lawns based on specific themes for lawn decs.
Junior biochemistry major, Charlotte Jordan, said that these events all created an exciting buzz around campus during her first homecoming.
“I feel like it is a little disappointing, but I don’t think there would have been much of a buzz about these events anyway since only juniors and seniors have ever experienced them,” Jordan said. “Apart from my roommates, I have not heard much about homecoming.”
Kathryn Aldstadt, a senior psychology major, was on the homecoming committee in the fall of 2019. Aldstadt said she believes the reason there is typically so much buzz surrounding homecoming is because of the role Greek life plays on campus, as much of the 2019 planning revolved around Greek life.
“We look at every population on campus and create teams for homecoming events and then based on each team’s attendance to events, we award points,” Aldstadt said. “The houses love to compete against one another to try and get the most points.”
Senior health science major, Matthew Moraw, said that the loss of events has caused some disappointment, however, most students are excited to be back to a somewhat normal homecoming.
“Most students are very excited to have an event go back to what they have experienced as a normal year,” Moraw said.
Moraw said the Bulldog beauty contest is a personal favorite of his, and he is excited to see it returning to campus this year. Jordan also said that the contest is an exciting moment for both her and her roommates.
One of the largest issues surrounding this years’ homecoming according to Benedict is simply filling in time.
“The [football] game does not start until 6:00 p.m this year, which compared to a typical homecoming, creates a large amount of time to fill in with events,” Benedict said. “Typically, everything happens before noon, we have the game and then everyone wants to go do something else and finds their own ways to spend the afternoon.”
Moraw believes that the time difference will not impact the homecoming festivities too much. Now, people will be able to sleep in a little bit more and still attend the same amount of events.
Benedict said that there will be inflatables set up, along with food trucks, a DJ on the mall and minute to win it games. For a full list of events, you can go to Butler’s homecoming schedule online.
