The Diplomat
Franklin & Marshall’s weekly online newsletter
Homecoming 2010
F&M football fans cheer the Diplomats during last year's Homecoming victory against Muhlenberg College.
Signs of great teaching and great learning exist in countless places across the Franklin & Marshall campus, from classrooms and labs to music halls and athletic fields. But perhaps the best reminders of the College’s core strengths in teaching and learning arrive on campus Oct. 29, when alumni return for Homecoming Weekend 2010.
The College will continue its yearlong celebration of Great Teaching, Great Learning at Homecoming festivities Oct. 29 to 31. This year’s schedule includes the usual fare of popular events, including the tailgate extravaganza and Nevonian Society luncheon, in addition to several new events designed to reconnect alumni with the teaching and learning they experienced at F&M. The complete schedule of Homecoming events is available online.
On Friday, Oct. 29, alumni have a chance to return to the classroom at “Homecoming Alumni College,” where professors will discuss their current work and some of the courses available to F&M students. The classes will begin at 1:30 p.m. in the Druker Commons of the Barshinger Life Sciences & Philosophy Building and will be led by Patricia O’Hara, professor of English; Laurie Baulig, adjunct assistant professor of business, organizations & society and director of the Center for Liberal Arts and Society; and Louise Stevenson, professor of history and American studies.
Later on Friday, the College holds its annual Athletics Hall of Fame Reception and Dinner in the Alumni Sports & Fitness Center. This year’s Hall of Fame inductees are Penny Blakeman '86, John Hargreaves '74, Alex Kraft '02, Justin Salton '03, Joseph Schaller '82, Dale Schleif '73 and Jennifer Slaybaugh '92. The commemoration of F&M athletics continues on Saturday morning with a breakfast for the College's first undefeated and untied team, the 1950 football team.
The celebration of Great Teaching, Great Learning continues on Saturday, when Interim President John F. Burness ’67 welcomes alumni back to campus and shares his thoughts in the Barshinger Center for Musical Arts. Burness will present the Alumni Citation to Nancy Floyd ’76, P’13, and the Presidential Medal to Steve Hicks, a craftsman who works with F&M’s Catastrophic Relief Alliance.
Guests are invited to remain in Barshinger Saturday morning for a lively discussion on the 2010 midterm elections, led by Terry Madonna, director of the Floyd Institute’s Center for Politics and Public Affairs, Joe Karlesky, the Honorable and Mrs. John C. Kunkel Professor of Government, and Stephen Medvic, associate professor of government and department chair.
The Homecoming tailgate extravaganza will greet visitors Saturday afternoon at the Williamson parking lot prior to the football game between F&M and McDaniel College. This year’s tailgate is “bigger and better than ever,” says Cathy Roman ’77, director of alumni relations. It will have a Halloween theme, with candy available for trick-or-treaters at every tent.
“You can’t walk through the tailgate extravaganza and not have fun,” says Donna Pflum, assistant director of alumni relations.
