Students Pass Down Traditions for Future Lions

Written By: Ian Silvester

While walking around the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith campus, ask anyone what makes this place so special, and most answers will be about feeling like a family or being connected. 

So, what creates this feeling? Sure, it’s the people—faculty and staff who strive to help every student, classmates who share notes, or the friends made along the way. But maybe there also is something constantly bubbling underneath that ensures that feeling is possible. That “something” is traditions. 

“Traditions are established by students, especially upperclassmen,” said Josh Simonds, assistant director of alumni engagement and annual giving. “They have to be natural, and they have to be something students identify as meaningful or impactful or transformative to them.” 

Simonds said that when things are worthwhile, they stick. When students become alumni, it’s UAFS traditions that keep bonds strong. 

“No matter how long it may have been, traditions give alumni shared experiences they can talk about in a really meaningful way,” Simonds said. 

At UAFS, the first tradition students experience typically happens before classes even begin. Cub Camp, which began more than 20 years ago, is often considered every Lion’s first tradition. Almost immediately following the three-day event, students get to really feel what college is like with Howdy Dance, the Block Party, and Welcome Week, Simonds said. 

However, traditions aren’t just the extravagant or comfort-breaking events of those first few days at UAFS. Oftentimes, traditions at UAFS are made between friends and small groups. 

For seniors Maci Hodges and Taylor McCain, many great memories from UAFS involve traditions with their fellow sorority sisters from Gamma Phi Beta and the organizations they are members of across campus. 

Whether it’s participating in their annual volleyball tournament, Moonball, to support G-Phi’s philanthropic endeavors, TLC Tuesday Nights for shows, or holiday parties with friends, simple traditions resonated with both girls.  

“Taylor and I are both huge testaments to going to everything that the campus offers,” Maci said. “We both came from a small town or small high school, so coming here, we just wanted to do everything we could and get the most out of our college experience.” 

By being involved, both Maci and Taylor have helped create new traditions for future and current Lions to experience. 

Maci spent two years on the Cub Camp D-Staff, where her team introduced the Cub Camp Cup and Spirit Stick to complement traditional activities such as Color Wars, Showcase, and the candlelight ceremony under the Bell Tower.  

Taylor worked in the Campus and Community Events (CACE) Office and was an integral part of re-imagining Homecoming, placing a renewed focus on athletics and engagement across more student organizations rather than merely relying on fraternities and sororities. 

“We’ve had a hand in starting newer traditions, and that’s exciting not only for us, but also to be able to get our friends or even younger students that we talk to come to things and see how they make it bigger and better, makes it more exciting for them, too,” Taylor said. 

So, whether it’s attending a Midnight Breakfast or Long Night Against Procrastination at the end of a semester, going through the haunted house at Haunted University, snapping a selfie with Numa or Chancellor Riley, climbing the RAWC wall, attending an athletic event at “The Stubb” or Crowder Field, or relaxing with friends during a weekly binge of TLC reality shows, traditions truly are at the heart of what makes UAFS feel so special. 

It's proven that students who are involved during college are more successful in the classroom because of incentives like engaging with others or knowing how to use available resources. Having traditions fosters engagement and resource utilization among Lions, no matter where they are in their college journey. 

Plus, UAFS makes it easy to keep track of what traditions students have been part of with a Traditions Keeper, available on NUMALink, which acts as a checklist of more than 40 ways to get the full UAFS experience. Students who complete 20 traditions can get a free t-shirt, and those who complete 30 receive a cord to wear at graduation.  

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