We’ve Got Spirit, Yes We Do!

For the first six weeks of our new students’ time at Wake Forest, there will be activities and programming related to a particular topic: the Spirit of Wake Forest; Campus Resources; Students and Community; Inclusive Citizenship and Leadership; Arts and Culture; and Faculty Fellowship.

Our Weekly Messages will try to roughly match those weekly themes, so let’s get started with the Spirit of Wake Forest!

I was a Wake Forest student myself and have been an administrator for 25+ years. The concept of the “spirit of Wake Forest” is something that to my mind has some absolutes,- things like friendliness and honor, nurturing person to person connections, a strong sense of community – but also has some ability to evolve from generation to generation.

Some of the spirit of Wake Forest comes directly from our motto, Pro Humanitate (for humanity). That’s the idea that all of us are bound to develop our knowledge and skills in service to the greater good of humanity. You’ll see that spirit coming through in some of our cherished ampus traditions that have a service or philanthropic component:

• Hit the Bricks (in the fall) and Wake N’ Shake (in the spring) are days of running around the Quad or partaking in a dance marathon, respectively, to raise awareness and funds for the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund. (Brian Piccolo was our star football alumnus who later played for the Chicago Bears and died tragically young from cancer. The movie Brian’s Song from the 70s tells his story).
• Project Pumpkin provides a Halloween carnival for local children.
• There are numerous other service and volunteer opportunities for our students, and they can learn more on our Office of Civic and Community Engagement website.

Some of the spirit of Wake Forest comes from our athletics program. We love to support our Demon Deacon student-athletes (and poke good-natured fun at our ACC competitors). Watching a game is a terrific way to spend an afternoon or evening, and your students will be surrounded by other students in a vibrant and fun atmosphere. As a matter of fact, on Wednesday, August 28th our new students can participate in Wake the Demons, a fun filled pep rally type kickoff to the fall sports season. They won’t want to miss it!

Throughout the semester, we try to make it as easy as possible for students to opt in to our sports:

• All undergraduate students receive free admission to all Wake Forest athletic events by showing their Deacon OneCards. However, the number of seats at these games is limited, and spots are first come, first served.
• The Screamin’ Demons are a student group that supports all Wake Forest athletic teams. They are considered the loudest and proudest Wake Forest fans, and their presence helps to create the energy and atmosphere that make Wake Forest sporting events such a great tradition. Membership in the Screamin’ Demons includes T-shirts for football and basketball games. Screamin’ Demons also receive priority for the best seats at sporting events.
• Prior to football games, the athletics department runs shuttle buses between the Reynolda Campus and Truist Field. The buses typically start picking up students at Wait Chapel four hours before game time. As kickoff approaches, additional shuttle buses will also make pickups at Benson University Center.

Families, you can learn more about our school spirit, history, and traditions. Encourage your new students to embrace all these spirit-building activities!