Virginia Tech University: Corps of Cadets Traditions, Ring Dance, and Sophomore Night

            Virginia Tech is a college rich in culture, largely due to their military heritage dating back to its founding in 1872. Their military heritage is still in existence today, which influences many of the traditions of the university. Some of the traditions include the Corps of Cadets traditions, the ring dance, and sophomore night. 

            Many people consider the Corps of Cadets to be the keeper of traditions at Virginia Tech. One of the traditions of the Corps is the mentor relationship between the freshmen and the juniors. This relationship works both ways. The freshmen will help the junior cadets by supporting them through all the phases of the Ring Dance. The juniors will help the freshmen cadets by acting as a mentor through their first year as a cadet at Virginia Tech. Another tradition of the Corps is turn about day, now called shadow day. Shadow day is when the freshmen and the upperclassmen switch roles for a day. So the freshmen class is in charge, and the upperclassmen revert back to the role of a freshman cadet. The purpose of this tradition is to give the freshmen a glimpse into the responsibilities they will have as they progress up the ranks.

            The ring dance is another tradition at Virginia Tech that dates back to 1934, with the Class of 1935. Once couples enter the dance, they receive two ribbons. The lady will wear her date’s ring on her wrist with the darker ribbon, and the man will wear his date’s ring on his wrist with the lighter ribbon. Later in the night, the couples will exchange rings while the Corps of Cadets stands in the ballroom in the shape of the class number.

            Sophomore night is another tradition at Virginia Tech that goes along with the history of the college. During the first fifty years of Virginia Tech’s history, student discipline was a challenge for the university’s administration and faculty. This actually led to the dismissal of two presidents at Virginia Tech. Sophomore night emerged from this challenging situation. This was one night during the year where the sophomore class of cadets would try to outdo the previous sophomore classes in the amount of mischief and destruction they could cause. This tradition ended in 1925 when sophomores took cows to the top floor of barracks, put a variety of farm vehicles and a horse drawn hearse on the roof of barracks, and brought two steam rollers for a bullfight. They also drove a grocery truck down a stairway to a basement and pulled a fire hose reel up a flagpole on campus. This sophomore night resulted in strong disciplinary action from the current president of the university and ended the sophomore night tradition forever.

            For more information on Virginia Tech traditions please visit http://www.alumni.vt.edu/traditions/index.html (used as a source). 

University of Michigan: The ‘M’ Legend, Engineering Arch Nuptials, and Hash Bash

            The University of Michigan is full of interesting traditions and superstitions that relate to the school’s history and also connects the campus of students with the community around the campus. Two of the more superstitions at the University of Michigan are the ‘M’ legend and the engineering arch nuptials. A popular tradition of the University of Michigan’s campus is hash bash.

            The ‘M’ legend is a superstition known to students at the University of Michigan. The superstition states that stepping on the bronze ‘M’ in the middle of campus before your first blue book exam will cause you to fail that exam and possibly the class. Some students even avoid stepping on the bronze ‘M’ after their first blue book exam. There is a way to reverse the effect of this superstition; however, it is near impossible to do. The way to do this is to run from the Museum of Natural History on campus to the back of the Bell Tower and back. However, you must start this at the stroke of midnight and complete this task before the clock finishes its twelve chimes. The round trip distance between these buildings is about half a mile.

            Another superstition of the University of Michigan’s campus is the engineering arch nuptials. This superstition has a happier ending than the past superstition. This superstition states that if couples kiss underneath the engineering arch at midnight, then the couple will eventually get married. This does not happen as much with couples in college, but many alumni who get married on campus tend to use this arch as a part of their big day.

            A popular tradition at the University of Michigan is hash bash, which is essentially a huge street fair in Ann Arbor, Michigan. This tradition has been going on for over thirty years, and was created in an attempt to legalize marijuana. Now hash bash is an all day party with bands and hippie vendors.

            To learn more about the University of Michigan’s campus traditions visit http://www.unigo.com/articles/legends_of_the_university_of_michigan_campus/ (used as a source).