Spring Break
Parade changes increase CSU-community participation
Madeline Novey
Issue date: 10/10/08 Section: News
As thousands of green and gold-clad children jumped for candy, sixty-year CSU alumni sat cloaked in blankets and community members and CSU students lined the parade route Friday at 5 p.m., it appeared that the changes to the 2008 Homecoming Parade and Homecoming Festival did not deter community participation as so many Fort Collins' community members had anticipated.
"We couldn't have asked for more success in the first year," said Matt Helmer, CSU spokesperson and Homecoming and Family Weekend Committee. "I think with the numbers that we saw in participation-not only the students, but the community-we will we will continue to follow this structure in the future."
The New Parade
Parade attendants, who lined the new parade route that started on Howes Street, followed the curve of the Oval and ended on the Lory Student Center West Lawn, cheered as a mix of "green" floats, bicyclists and a slue of eco-friendly messages marched to the beat of the parade theme "It's easy being green."
A result of the change to a Friday night parade re-routed to travel through the CSU campus -as opposed to the past Saturday morning event- university officials saw a significant increase in the number of CSU entries in the parade and CSU-community attendance.
Students who hadn't previously gone to the parade or the Homecoming Festival said that the move to campus and the change in time made it more accessible.
"I didn't attend the parade in the last years," said senior biology education major Jessica Quiq. "I never really knew when it was going on, but since it was on campus, I came out this year."
Out of the 85 parade entries in Friday's parade, about 35 represented the university compared to 2007 in which only 10 out of 170 parade entries were from CSU.
From Sigma Phi Epsilon, Sigma Alpha Epsilon and Gamma Phi Beta's toga-clad, man-drawn Parthenon to the Associated Students of CSU's float, swamped with plants and drawn by a 2009 hybrid Tahoe, CSU organizations upheld the university's "green" name and commitment to both CSU and the community.
"We couldn't have asked for more success in the first year," said Matt Helmer, CSU spokesperson and Homecoming and Family Weekend Committee. "I think with the numbers that we saw in participation-not only the students, but the community-we will we will continue to follow this structure in the future."
The New Parade
Parade attendants, who lined the new parade route that started on Howes Street, followed the curve of the Oval and ended on the Lory Student Center West Lawn, cheered as a mix of "green" floats, bicyclists and a slue of eco-friendly messages marched to the beat of the parade theme "It's easy being green."
A result of the change to a Friday night parade re-routed to travel through the CSU campus -as opposed to the past Saturday morning event- university officials saw a significant increase in the number of CSU entries in the parade and CSU-community attendance.
Students who hadn't previously gone to the parade or the Homecoming Festival said that the move to campus and the change in time made it more accessible.
"I didn't attend the parade in the last years," said senior biology education major Jessica Quiq. "I never really knew when it was going on, but since it was on campus, I came out this year."
Out of the 85 parade entries in Friday's parade, about 35 represented the university compared to 2007 in which only 10 out of 170 parade entries were from CSU.
From Sigma Phi Epsilon, Sigma Alpha Epsilon and Gamma Phi Beta's toga-clad, man-drawn Parthenon to the Associated Students of CSU's float, swamped with plants and drawn by a 2009 hybrid Tahoe, CSU organizations upheld the university's "green" name and commitment to both CSU and the community.
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