Ferris’ tradition of a homecoming bonfire is being changed to a homecoming pep rally.
The question on everyone’s mind is: why the change?
According to Associate Dean of Student Life Nicolas Campau, there are a few good reasons for the switch.
“It was a really hard decision. As a Ferris alumni myself, I loved the tradition, but we wanted to try some new ideas. One of the biggest opportunities we have now is to no longer be dependent on the weather, and we can do a lot more now that we are inside,” Campau said.
Not having to rely on the weather to hold an event can be a really great opportunity, especially when certain events have many people relying on it, including the DJ that the Student Life department has hired.
The pep rally is said to have a current student DJ, vintage arcade games, Skee-Ball, a place to create game day signs and a Ferris Pride T-Shirt Exchange. The Ferris Pride T-Shirt Exchange is an exciting addition that will allow students to exchange any old university shirt in for a brand new Ferris one.
The Pep Rally will have much more free food. Because the location is inside, there will be many more opportunities for food that could not be kept outside before.
Campau said the Homecoming Committee worked hard to find a new location for the event before ultimately settling on the University Center.
“We looked at trying to move the bonfire, but the traditional location near Lot 61 was the only safe place to host a fire of our size. We worked closely with our Public Safety and Grounds colleagues and walked the campus looking for another suitable location; unfortunately, there wasn’t one. Lot 61 was also a challenge to grow the event as there are limited power and lighting to do other games. This gave our team a lot to think about and eventually we decided we wanted to replicate the atmosphere created at the bonfire and grow the event to include more things to do while attending that we couldn’t previously,” Campau said.
The pep rally will be held 9 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27, in the University Center.