Homecoming 2023 featured classic fun for everyone, with a week of events and treats for students, reunions for alumni, tailgating and a family-friendly block party, football and volleyball games, and much more.
With the theme “Once a Bluejay, Always a Bluejay,” Homecoming Week kicked off on Sept. 18 with a focus on student festivities, including a Ballistic Swing carnival ride, laser tag and other games on the Mall, and “The Last Five Years” in the Mill Theatre.
More than 30 student clubs, residence halls and other organizations participated in the Homecoming Student Banner Competition. After being decorated by the student groups, the banners hung in the Founders Lounge throughout Homecoming Week. The winners were West Hall, Sigma Kappa and the Elmhurst Superhero Social Club.
Homecoming & Reunion Weekend got under way on Friday, Sept. 22, with gatherings for the classes of 1963 and 1973 (the 50-year reunion class), Black Student Union and English Department alumni, and several others.
That evening, alumni and students crowded the Mall—and the new Club Blue reunion tent—for a Homecoming concert with the high-energy cover band Hello Weekend, along with the traditional bonfire and pep rally. An impressive drone show decorated the night sky in points of light that formed University-themed designs.
Saturday morning, spectators gathered along Prospect Avenue to watch the Homecoming Parade, with University Board of Trustees Vice Chair Wes Becton and his wife, Ingrid, serving as grand marshals. Other participants included the cheerleading and poms teams, the JayLightz dance team, the Ceramics Club, the South Asian Student Association, Alpha Mu Gamma Honor Society, the Student Athlete Advisory Committee and many more.
The Bluejay Block Party and tailgating tents on Alexander Boulevard brought out crowds of alumni, students, families and community members for food trucks, music, games and entertainers. That evening, the 1983 NCAA Division III Volleyball Championship Team was honored as the 2023 women’s volleyball team capped Homecoming Weekend with a 3-0 sweep of Alverno College.