Ask a student about the moment they knew that Muhlenberg was the college for them, and you’ll hear many answers: the friendliness of the campus community, the attentiveness of admissions counselors, the interest that faculty showed in them on campus tours, the beauty of the College Green. Ask a student about the moments and memories that stand out from their time at Muhlenberg, however, and you’ll likely hear about one (or a few) of the following traditions. Whether these events started organically or are the result of careful planning, one thing is for sure: Muhlenberg wouldn’t be the same without them.
Candle-lighting at Orientation and Senior Days
Each Orientation, students gather on the lawn outside of Haas College Center to celebrate the start of their college experience. As individuals arrive, they’re handed an unlit candle that is soon brought to life through an act of community. President Harring lights the initial candle and then lights the candles of alumni in attendance before the flame is passed along to the first-year students. As the light passes from candle to candle, from student to student, the College’s “front lawn” is soon aglow.
That intimate moment is echoed four years later when students gather for Senior Days preceding Commencement weekend activities for graduating students and their families. As students once again pass light to adjacent peers, they are reminded that Commencement signals both a beginning and an end. The flickering candles held by graduating students serve as the perfect bookend tribute to a four-year experience — and the start of a celebration of what comes next.
A Cappella Fest
Muhlenberg’s 118+ student organizations provide an opportunity to engage in passions, hobbies and interests of all kinds. For the vocally inspired, the College’s six (yes, six) a cappella groups cover an entire spectrum of sound. That joyous noise reaches a crescendo during A Cappella Fest, an event held each April that brings together Muhlenberg’s best singers from Noteworthy, the Acafellas, the Chaimonics, CODA, the Dynamics and InAcchord, as well as special guests from other colleges and universities. Ticket proceeds benefit a local nonprofit organization, including frequent recipient and community partner, the Allentown School District Foundation.
Jefferson Field Day
Each May on the last Friday of the spring semester before finals week begins, hundreds of Jefferson Elementary students flood onto Muhlenberg’s campus to play and interact with dozens of the College’s students, faculty and staff. Jefferson Field Day is an event coordinated by the Office of Community Engagement as a yearly celebration of the relationship between the two organizations and a reminder of the College’s commitment to engage in deep, meaningful partnerships with our Allentown neighbors.
Activities span the outdoor fields and the Life Sports Center and include races, obstacle courses and games of skill and chance. Located just a few miles from campus, Jefferson has long served as one of the College’s most enduring community partners, with near-weekly interactions between the school and Muhlenberg’s athletic teams, after-school programs and courses that embrace community-engaged learning experiences.
Greek Week/Greek Sing
Greek Week first took place at Muhlenberg in 1963, when the College had only fraternities. Now, Greek Week, held in the spring, is a time when the eight nationally or internationally affiliated Greek-letter organizations on campus — four fraternities and four sororities — come together for community-building and fun. Popular activities include kickball, banner competitions, tug-of-war and more. The week also includes a philanthropy component in support of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Lehigh Valley; chapters compete to see who can raise the most money.
The week culminates in Greek Sing, a night when chapters battle in the Seegers Union Event Space to have the best dancing/lip-synching performance. One fraternity and one sorority take home trophies for their acts. Trophies are also awarded to the chapters that performed best throughout the week’s competitions. Fifteen other awards are presented that night to top individuals and chapters.
Welcome Weekend Traditions
Scarving
One of the College’s newer traditions is the scarving of new students. After the Welcome Weekend candle-lighting, alumni — many of whom are now part of Muhlenberg’s faculty or staff — present first-year and transfer students with red and gray scarves. It is a symbolic welcoming into the “pack” — once a Mule, always a Mule — and also a bookend meant to mirror the stoles students will wear at graduation.
Welcome Back Picnic
The evening before classes begin, the campus community gathers on the Burkholder Quad for a welcome back picnic. It’s a moment for returning students, faculty and staff to reconnect after summer break and for new students to enjoy the vibrant, welcoming community they just became a part of.
Finals Traditions
Late Night Breakfast
Muhlenberg’s Wood Dining Commons is legendary on campus for offering incredible food (as evidenced by frequent placement on The Princeton Review’s Best Campus Food list) and a place to connect with friends in an atmosphere unlike any other on campus. When finals week approaches, the College community raises the bar, and faculty, staff and alumni host a late-night breakfast for students. Attendees enjoy a free meal from 10 p.m. to midnight — and may even catch sight of President Harring flipping omelets.
Senior Days Traditions
Senior Class Bell Tower Tours
The Senior Class Connections Campaign is an initiative led by members of the graduating class and advancement staff. Each year, campaign representatives set a challenge for their peers to make a gift that matches their class year ($20.18 in 2018, for example). Those that meet or exceed that figure receive a guided tour of the David A. Miller Bell Tower atop Haas College Center during Senior Days. From there, above the tops of Muhlenberg’s mighty red oak and elm trees, views span the College grounds and Allentown’s West End.
Champagne Brunch
College orientations are whirlwind affairs. For students departing home for the first time, the flurry of forms to fill out, meetings to attend, locations to memorize and people to meet can seem daunting. Knowing how chaotic this experience can be, Muhlenberg Orientation Leaders schedule a moment for reflection into the bustle of the day. First-year students fill out reflection cards — a brief message to their future selves — that are sealed and stored until their last week on campus four years later.
The senior class gathers for Champagne Brunch the Friday before Commencement to open those notes they wrote four years prior. Tears and laughter flow freely as students read their self-addressed messages (and find the occasional $20 bill gifted to their future self) and think back to their first days on Muhlenberg’s campus.
More Traditions
It’s impossible to account for every moment and event that makes Muhlenberg special, but here are a few more additions to our list.
Candlelight Carols
On the first weekend of Advent, Egner Memorial Chapel hosts musical and dance performances featuring the College’s choirs and ensembles.
National Mule Day
For this annual holiday, celebrated October 26, the Muhlenberg Activities Council (MAC) plans programming that has in past years included mule stuff-a-plush, a mocktail mule bar, mule-shaped cookie decorating, photos with Marti and student-designed, mule-themed T-shirt giveaways.
Scotty Wood Weekend
November wrestling tournaments are named after Muhlenberg’s original dining services provider, Milton W. “Scotty” Wood.