Jim Amidon — It’s a big week in Crawfordsville. The Art League kicks off its Downtown Exhibit Friday night, the same night as the Celebration of Chocolate. It’s also Homecoming at Wabash College, which includes a week of activities that honor our traditions, celebrate our accomplishments, and welcome our alumni back to campus.
For freshman students, it’s a big week because the Sphinx Club has a spirit competition that includes decorations, cheers, banners, Chapel Sing, and the legendary “queen” contest. The first big test for the freshmen — outside of class — comes Thursday when over 200 of them will compete in the Chapel Sing competition.
Chapel Sing, as many of you know, pits living units against each other in a 45-minute singing, screaming, shouting competition. “Old Wabash,” the College’s fight song, is known as the longest college fight song in the nation. Sphinx Club members will listen closely as the freshmen belt out both long verses while standing in the shadow of the Wabash Chapel.
Men who miss a word or get mixed up are “awarded” a scarlet W, which is spray-painted on the white t-shirts all freshmen are required to wear during the competition. After nearly an hour of frenzied singing, the Sphinx Club will bring into the Chapel the living units they deem most worthy. It’s a coveted prize to win Chapel Sing and the competition is, in a word, intense.
On Friday, many of the College’s Glee Club alumni will return for a reunion. The Wabash Glee Club has for decades served as an ambassadorial group for the College, traveling across the United States and around the world. Glee Club members from as far back as 1941 — and maybe earlier — will be back for a series of performances on Saturday.
Friday evening, Wabash will host the esteemed economist Professor Michael Mandelbaum, who will present the 2007 Benjamin Rogge Memorial Lecture. Mandelbaum is the Christian A. Herter Professor and Director of the American Foreign Policy Program at Johns Hopkins University, and is the author of 10 books and editor of 12 more.
Professor Mandelbaum will host an open forum in the afternoon, followed by his speech — “Democracy’s Good Name: The Rise and Risks of the World’s Most Popular Form of Government” — at 8 p.m. Consult the Wabash website for more details.
The big day is Saturday. Freshmen will decorate the campus with “floats that don’t float” in front of most living units. At 11:00 a.m., the National Association of Wabash Men will host its annual Homecoming Alumni Chapel. During that program, the NAWM will present its most important awards.
Of local interest, former Crawfordsville resident Richard O. Ristine will receive the Alumni Admissions Fellow award, and will give remarks in commemoration of the College’s 175th year. Another long-time resident, Jasmine Robinson, will be named an honorary alumna of the College.
Receiving Alumni Awards of Merit are Joseph Barnette ’61, former Chairman of the Wabash Board of Trustees; Dr. Robert Einterz ’77, who developed the IU-Kenya Partnership to battle HIV/AIDS in Africa; and David Kendall ’66, a ground-breaking attorney whose clients include President Bill Clinton and Senator Hillary Clinton.
Wabash hosts Denison in soccer at 11 and the football team hosts Earlham at 2 p.m.
At halftime of the football game, the freshmen will compete in the banner, cheer, and queen contests. If you’ve ever been curious about what a “queen” at a college for men looks like, you’re welcome to attend. Be advised, though. It’s not a pretty sight.
The weekend is capped off by the Homecoming Concert, at which the Wabash College Glee Club and the Alumni Glee Club will perform. The concert, which is free and open to the public, begins at 8 p.m. Saturday evening.
From important lectures to silly freshman rites of passage, Homecoming at Wabash has a little something for everyone. I hope you’ll plan to join us in what promises to be an exciting week in Crawfordsville.
