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Homecoming inspires campus unity
By David Cardenas
dcarden5@mscd.edu

Photo by Megan Carneal • mcarneal@mscd.edu Phi Sigma Sigma takes part in the bed races, one activity of many during homecoming week, at the bus turnaround on Feb. 9. Homecoming is intended to build school spirit and helps Auraria feel like a traditional college campus.

The sun came out just in time for this year’s homecoming bonanza.

As the clouds parted and the snow began to melt, students demonstrated their Roadrunners pride by participating in myriad sporting, fundraising and just plain silly events throughout the week. The success of this year’s homecoming had Metro President Stephen Jordan excited for the future.

“It’s great. Every year (homecoming) gets bigger and bigger,” Jordan said. “The school is growing, and kids like having an urban school with a traditional campus lifestyle.”

It all started on Monday when students gathered in the Tivoli Turnhalle for mashed potato diving, part of the weeklong “get your game on” series. Contestants face-planted into pounds of mashed potatoes in a desperate search for a well-hidden piece of gum.

The winner of the contest, sophomore Allison Sandlin of Metro sorority Phi Sigma Sigma, accepted the victory on behalf of her team and was named queen of mashed potato diving. Having support from her sorority sisters was the motivation she needed to bring home the victory, she said.

“Not as bad as I thought,” Sandlin said. “Once I found the gum, I had to chew it and blow a bubble. That was the hardest part.”

Homecoming featured both daily and weeklong events, the latter including a scavenger hunt and the fourth annual penny drive. For the drive, deposit buckets were placed in offices throughout campus from Jan. 16 through Feb. 8. The money collected was donated to a charity chosen by the winning office.

One of the highlights of the week was on Wednesday night, when Metro fraternity Sigma Alpha Epsilon hosted its first-ever dodgeball tournament, in which 14 teams – including Metro fraternities and sororities and faculty and student groups – competed for supremacy.

“It’s a good turnout for the first year,” said sophomore Melinda McClain, president of Phi Sigma Sigma. “It’s for a good cause. I think that’s why people want to participate.”

Proceeds from the event went to the Children’s Miracle Network, an alliance partnership with the Children’s Hospital that provides technology funding and treatment for children’s hospitals nationwide.

Dodgeball participants also included fraternity chapters from other schools, including the University of Denver chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon and the Colorado School of Mines chapter of Sigma Nu.

“We came here with our chapter and played dodgeball for a good cause,” said Bryan Green of DU’s Sigma Alpha Epsilon.

The tournament’s victors were Metro’s aviation fraternity, Alpha Eta Rho, the only co-ed fraternity to enter and the oldest fraternity at Metro, having been founded in 1970.

The week’s events led up to a pep rally held Thursday, during which Jordan reminded those gathered why they were there.

“It’s a great day to be a Roadrunner,” Jordan said.

After the rally, students showed their school pride by cheering on the men’s and women’s basketball teams.

“Roadrunners never die, no matter how much Coyote chases him,” junior Trevor Hutchins said. “I’ll sure be at the games with body paint.”

By Friday the cold had returned, and only diehard Roadrunners attended the exciting but strange event known as the bed races.

For the event, students from the Metro chapter of the American Society of Mechanical Engineering constructed the beds on wheels. Teams of five raced 60 yards down a straight-shot track, changed into pink satin pajamas and raced back.

Sorority Tri Sigma eventually took home the victory, having been undefeated throughout the double elimination tournament.

It was Metro alumna Amber Michael who, at the end of the races, best summed up the events of the week.

“It’s about homecoming spirit that we all need,” Michael shouted. “I love this school.”