UND Celebrates Homecoming Week 2024 – Dakota Student

Each year at the start of the fall semester, the University of North Dakota hosts its annual Homecoming Week to welcome its community to another great academic year. This tradition has existed since 1916 and is something students, faculty, alumni and the Grand Forks community look forward to each year. This year's Homecoming week is scheduled for this week, September 23-28.

The first big event of the week was the blood drive, which took place on Tuesday, September 24th at the wellness center. The blood drive was a great opportunity for individuals to give back to their community by donating or volunteering to help others donate. Part of the excitement of Homecoming is that members of the Grand Forks and UND community will come together to do good for their community, and this event is a great expression of that.

The next big event was scheduled to take place the night of Wednesday, September 25th, and that was the annual Homecoming Pep Rally at the Grand Forks Town Square downtown. The food trucks opened to the public at 5 p.m., after which the program began at 6:15 p.m. This program featured some remarkable words from UND President Andrew Armacost and Coach Bubba. Then there were performances by the marching band AND Pride of the North and AND Cheer. Once the program was complete, everyone was encouraged to stick around, grab something to eat, play a few games, and enter to win one of two big competitions.

Friday, September 27th will be a busy day filled with various events honoring alumni, faculty, Hall of Fame members, fans and various departments. Additionally, some departments around campus decided to host their own open house tours. This week is known to be a time when a wide range of individuals can visit campus, and everyone at UND seeks to create a welcoming and intimate atmosphere for alumni.

The annual Homecoming Parade is scheduled to take place Saturday morning at 9 a.m. This is a great opportunity for the community to come together and support the various organizations and businesses participating in the parade. It also serves as an opportunity to get excited for the big game that takes place later in the day. After the parade, people usually make their way to the Alerus Center parking lot to prepare for tailgating. Tailgating is an activity that many people participate in to get even more excited about the upcoming game.

After the parade and tailgating festivities conclude, the final activity of Homecoming week begins at 1 p.m. The UND football game against Murray State serves as a final reminder to the community of why Homecoming Week is happening. This week and its associated activities have been a tradition for over 100 years and continue to grow each year. It has grown from a simple game that students can engage in to a full week of exciting activities and events that people of all ages who are part of the UND and Grand Forks community can participate in.

Nora Lee is a Dakota Student General Reporter. She can be reached at [email protected].