Before Groundhog, before Fall Fest, even before Charity week, the University of Dallas hosts Alumni & Family Weekend (AFW) every year during the last week of September. As one of the first major events of the year, it has the mark of something big: its own TGIT, a tarp on the mall and student bands performing almost every day.
Besides, AFW is unique in its own right — it is the only event in the year completely focused on who attends, not just on an activity or competition. Many family members and alumni fly in from across the country to be at UD just for these few days.
Since the weekend is obviously centered on those visiting campus, I asked some students how their experience was during AFW. With all the attention turned to our visitors, I figured it would be nice to know how the students felt towards this special tradition.
To start, the rugby game was a big hit. Junior politics major Nick Buono, whose parents flew in all the way from Washington DC, loved being able to show them the university. “It was the first time in two years they visited UD,” he said, “and it was a blast showing them around campus again, especially the amazing rugby game!”
Junior English major Thomas Hanssen agreed, calling the student v. alumni rugby game the “coolest thing ever.” He also loved “seeing all the people who have graduated coming back.”
Of course seeing familiar faces around campus again is a wonderful feeling, but one student described how it even goes beyond that. “It was just so amazing to see all the kids running around and see a bunch of old friends reuniting,” said junior art major Lucy Ruse, “and I didn’t know many of the people there for AFW, but it still felt like a reunion for me.”
Senior Noah Dreisbach said he “loved hanging out with alumni from sixty years ago and seeing how life was back then.” It seems like the bonds formed by UD are not limited by class nor by generation. Dreisbach said his favorite part about AFW was “the mall culture coming back.”
To be fair, it has been a sweltering beginning to the semester, and the mall has not seemed as active as it once was. But in the days leading up to AFW, things began to change. Junior PJ Connolly noticed that even before the weekend, “there were a lot of things on campus that gave a buzz that something was going on.”
Many expressed a desire to return as an alum themselves. When asked if he intended on returning to AFW, Buono responded by saying “absolutely.” Connolly hoped to come back as well, and said, “I’d return if I could,” and Dreisbach repeated the sentiment and said, “hopefully so.”
Ruse put to words a sentiment that rings true for many UD students, explaining it this way: “I already miss my Rome professors, so I can’t even imagine what it would feel like coming back as an alum.”
I think it’s safe to say that the students consider Alumni & Family Weekend to be one of the staples of the whole academic year.