With Bascom Hill thawing and sunbathers returning to the terrace, the season is right for the annual All Campus Party to return to campus.
Hosted by the University of Wisconsin Alumni Association in collaboration with the Student Board, the weeklong alcohol-alternative event will feature a revamped schedule of events culminating in a massive dance party for all students.
Brendan Sweeney, All Campus Party co-chair, said the events will celebrate campus spirit, with events beginning Thursday and running until April 21.
“The mission is to celebrate the onset of spring and pride for the university,” he said. “We try to create events students will love so they leave with another positive experience.”
On Thursday, the festivities will kick off with a party for the senior class outside of the WAA building on Lake Street. Sweeney said the event will feature music and prizes for members on the campus community en route to graduation.
WAA and the student organizers also forged a new partnership with the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Campus Center to raise awareness of bullying and harassment with the Break the Silence event on Friday.
Beginning at 4:00 p.m., students bused in from around the UW System will march from Library Mall to the Capitol to draw attention to homophobia and harassment on college campuses.
Aiden Caes, assistant director of the Center, said the national Day of Silence event has been held for 15 years, with events on campus previously hosted by the UW Allies Program, a student organization that promotes visibility for the LGBT community on campus.
“We’re hoping to raise awareness about bullying, harassment and homophobia on campus and the impact it has,” Caes said. “We want to put these issues on the radar as something that needs to be addressed.”
Sweeney said students can also anticipate Breakfast with Bucky, which expanded to Bascom, East Campus Mall, Engineering Mall and Tripp Commons locations. He said volunteers will provide thousands of students with all their favorite breakfast items on Monday morning, beginning around 8:00 a.m.
Students will also have the chance to sing their way to a free semester’s worth of textbooks during All Campus Idol, slated for Tuesday night at the Overture Center.
Attendees can expect Lori Berquam and Ron Dayne judging the competition, with Chancellor Biddy Martin on hand to crown the winner.
On Thursday, all students wearing red will get free pizza on East Campus Mall. Sweeney said music, giant inflatables and tables for student organizations will accompany nearly 400 pizzas on order.
Club Bucky, the keynote dance party event, will be held Thursday with a live DJ in the backyard of Witte Hall. Sweeney said the event drew nearly 4,000 students last year.
Seamus Fitzgerald, the director and founder of the UW Student Foundation, said the new student organization will facilitate multiple events during All Campus Party, including working a stop of Bucky’s Urban Odyssey, a team-based competition modeled after The Amazing Race.
He said the group also plans to host a dunk tank on Library Mall to give participants the chance to dunk UW athletes and professors. He added he hopes to help educate students while providing a fun and relaxing experience before finals.
