Adventures at Spirit Week 2014

What’s better than free food? Free food on Lehman Lawn, in beautiful spring weather, under the blooming magnolia tree, complete with a mechanical surfboard.

This past week was Spirit Week at Barnard, and it entailed all of these things. Spirit Week is a celebration of Barnard-ness organized by Student Government Association (SGA) and McIntosh Activities Council (McAC). It is comprised of a number of different events (often with free food!) around Barnard’s campus, and always seems to coincide with the blooming of the magnolia tree. This year’s Spirit Week theme was "road trip," so each day had a different mini-theme like a stop at the beach or stop at the park.

The first event was on Sunday night on the top floor of Sulzberger Tower. I wasn’t able to go to the event, but I heard they had the terraces open, and now am forever mad that I couldn’t go. Reason number 1298493 to go to Spirit Week events: cool things happen, like Sulz Tower being open.

Here's a photo that I took from Sulz Tower last year, which gives you an idea of the view that I missed on Sunday!

On Tuesday, there was flower pot painting and s’mores on the roof of the Diana Center. And on Wednesday, there were free drinks in coconuts and a mechanical surfboard on Lehman Lawn.
 

A stop at the beach: Meghan with her piña colada and someone “surfing” in the background!

Thursday came with free donuts in the morning, a BBQ lunch on Lehman Lawn, and ice cream in the afternoon.
 

BBQ on Lehman Lawn

Lina (in this year’s Spirit Week t-shirt) and me enjoying sunshine and BBQ.

Spirit Week and seeing all the Barnard students out on campus enjoying the beginning of spring always reminds me about why I chose Barnard in the first place.

Margeaux

 

Meaningful Events on Campus

If you are lucky enough to visit campus this week, you will be witnessing one of the great Barnard traditions.  Spirit Day has evolved into Spirit Week since I graduated: the result of hard-working and ambitious students who recognized that one day just wasn’t quite enough.  I had the great pleasure of serving on the McIntosh Activities Council (McAC) during my time at Barnard, and worked closely with members of the student government to plan Spirit Day, as well as several other school-wide events, throughout my senior year.  
 

Maya Zinkow (the current McAC president) 

and me with Millie, Spirit Day 2012

During my first three years at Barnard, these celebration days were always highlights of my year.  Barnard is a very academically focused school, and these events brought people out of the library and computer labs during the day to relax and visit with their classmates.  When the opportunity arose for me to take over the management of these events my senior year, I was thrilled to be able to give back to my college community.  

Best part of the early set-up shift?   

Picking up the balloons!

I remember walking up Broadway towards campus on my final Spirit Day, carrying (or being carried) by seven dozen multi-colored balloons and thinking back to my first Spirit Day three years previous.  It was the end of what had been a year of difficult transitions: moving to a new city, adjusting to college, making new friends.  I spent a good majority of that year being unsure of where and how I fit in to my new community.  However, as I sat surrounded by my fellow students, eating barbeque and making ice-cream sundaes, I realized how many people I knew, how many people cared about me, and how welcome I was in my new world.  I hung up balloons with renewed vigor on my final Spirit Day, thinking about all the first-years who would be having the same epiphany that day, and feeling grateful that I had the opportunity to contribute to their realization. 

My roommates and heroes Rebecca Moore, Shilpa Guha, and 

Clare Korir at our last Midnight Breakfast

It is rainy today in Washington, DC and I am sending thoughts of sun to Barnard’s campus.  Barnard is such a special place, and I love that there is now a week to remind us how appreciated each student is by her peers, the administration and the community.

Melanie