e
6 | MONDAY, AUGUST 18, 2008
AROUND CAMPUS
Campus traditions unify Jayhawk mindset
BY REBEKAH SCAPERLANDA
rscaperlanda@kansan.com
It's that time again. You're standing before a game and the people next to you put their arms around you. No, they're not being extra friendly because of pregame activities. It's time to sing the Alma Mater. If this is one of the University's traditions you have yet to learn, you're in luck, because the lyrics are displayed on the big screen. There are many other KU traditions for students to learn, and whether the history behind them is folklore or fact, it's important to familiarize yourself with them.
Jennifer Jackson Sanner, senior vice president for communications of the KU Alumni Association, said learning KU traditions was like learning how Grandma and Grandpa met: it's part of your KU family history.
'I'm a Jayhawk'
"Learning the origins of our traditions is just as important as the knowing the lore of your own family," Sanner said. "The Jayhawk family prides itself on its history and on the traditions that new generations add to the KU story."
CHORUS:
Talk about the Sooners The Cowboys and the Buffs, Talk about the Tiger and his tail, Talk about the Wildcats, and those Cornhuskin' boys. But I'm the bird to make em weep and wail.
KU Info and KU Alumni
'Cause I'm a Jay, Jay, Jay, Jay, Jay, Jayhawk,
Up at Lawrence on the Kaw 'Cause I'm a Jay, Jay,
Jay, Jay, Jayhawk,
With a sis-boom, hip hoorah.
Got a bill that's big enough
To twist the Tiger's tail
Husk some corn and listen
To the Cornhusker's wail-
'Cause I'm a Jay, Jay,
Jay, Jay, Jayhawk,
Riding on a Kansas gale.
Association helped make the stories behind these traditions as clear as the water in the Chi Omega fountain.
Jon Goering/KANSAN
Students are allowed to swim and wade in the Chi Omega fountain, which was a gift from Chi Omega sorority in 1955. The tradition of swimming in the fountain was spread by word of mouth.
FIGHT SONG
Stadium and the Kansas Union as well as World War I memorials.
According to KU Info, the KU fight song "I'm a Jayhawk," was written by George "Dumpy" Bowles in 1912. Bowles, a student with the class of 1892, produced musicals for the University. In 1912 "I'm a Jayhawk" appeared in one of Bowles' shows.
The song was dormant until 1920 when the song added to the fund raising efforts for the Million Dollar Drive, which funded both Memorial
Fifty years later, the clapping began. Clapping along to the fight song began as a cheer that KU flag corps created. Apparently it took several years to catch on, but now students and alumni participate in the clap at every game.
If you're not exactly clapping coordinated, listen to an mp3 of the fight song on the KU Info Web site and practice before a game. Visit www.kuinfo.ku.edu, and search "clap."
SWIMMING IN THE CHI OMEGA FOUNTAIN
This refreshing tradition may not be found on KU Web sites or info pages. KU Info said the unofficial
tradition had been spread simply by word of mouth. Contrary to some students' belief, it is legal to swim or wade in the water, but not to climb it.
The Chi Omega Fountain itself was a gift from the Chi Omega Sorority in 1955. KU Info said the fountain holds 8,500 gallons of water. A KU tour brochure said "since its installation it has been an irresistible Mecca for youthful springtime frivolity."
"After we beat North Carolina during march madness, my friends and I were walking home from Allen Fieldhouse," said Jenny Mohwinkle, Topeka senior. "There were a whole bunch of people splashing around in the fountain. I definitely think it's a KU tradition worth taking part in."
WALKING THROUGH THE CAMPANILE
Curtis Marsh, KU Info program director, said walking through the Campanile was one of the traditions where the facts got a little fuzzy. The first commencement for the University was in 1873, but they didn't start walking down the hill until 1924. Walking down the hill for graduation is a tradition from
THE UNIVERSITY OF MARY KANSAN | WWW.KANSAN.COM
SEE TRADITION ON PAGE 8