LibGuides: 150 Years: Events

Alumni Minutes

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Minutes from the very first meeting of the Alumni Association of the Bloomsburg State Normal School, June 22, 1871.

Alumni Reunions

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The Class of 1897 at their first reunion in 1899, on the porch on the south side of Institute (Carver) Hall

Members of the Classes of 1882 and 1883 around the 1882 fountain located near Institute Hall, June 1907

Advertisement for the 1934 Philadelphia Reunion

Alumni Association chapters during the 1930s hosted large reunion banquets in major cities around the state. The Philadelphia area graduates met in 1934 at the Hotel Bellevue.

College President Francis Haas (fourth from left) attended the Dauphin County chapter banquet in 1938

Alumni Meals

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Menus for three different meals sponsored by the Alumni Association. The constant items from one to the next included olives, sweet pickles, chicken salad, cold ham, buttered buns, butter and water thins (crackers), Neapolitan ice cream, fancy cakes, and coffee.

Alumni Day

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Lunch being served on Alumni Day at Waller Hall and its cherished Long Porch, including members of the class of 1908, May 26, 1928

Since 1948, the Alumni Association has issued a Distinguished Service Award to graduates who have excelled in contributing to their profession, the University, or humanity. In 1953 four winners were present, along with Coach Jack Yohe at far left. To the right of Yohe are Albert Aldinger 1953, William Sutliff 1950, Danny Litwhiler 1948, and Elna Nelson 1962.

At an Alumni Day in the late 1970s are Donald Watts (standing in center), the first director of the Alumni Association who served from 1975 to 1980, and Doug Hippenstiel (seated at left), the second, 1980-2006

Alumni Day was a spring event designed to help reconnect alumni to the campus. In more recent decades, there have been years when it expanded to encompass an entire weekend with many different events being scheduled.

1939 Centennial Celebration

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Some of the many publications made for celebrating the college’s centennial in 1939. This was the first large scale event in which the Alumni Association played an active and major role.

Homecoming Over the Years

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The November 16, 1928 issue of the student newspaper, the Maroon and Gold, welcomed alumni coming back to Bloomsburg

For Homecoming 1965 students used carved pumpkins to greet returning alumni

The 1977 parade celebrated 50 years of Homecoming

Mailings inviting alumni back for Homecoming in 2014 and 2018. The theme for Homecoming 2018 was “Sweet Treats.”

Since 1928 the big fall event for the Association has been Homecoming, with special events for graduates visiting their alma mater.