Graduates dip into the future
Issue date: 12/4/08 Section: News
Members of the campus community are invited to watch nearly 100 students show their purple pride when they participate in "The Big Dip" ceremony Friday at SFA.
The event, which is designated as the university's official Mentor Ring presentation ceremony, will begin at noon in the Grand Ballroom of the BPSC.
In 2003, the Big Dip was institutionalized to be held on Friday of "Dead Week"- the week before final exams- of each fall and spring semester. The largest ring ceremony to date occurred in December 2006 when 191 students dipped their hand.
The "Big Dip" refers to being "dipped in pride" before students receive their Mentor Ring. When the presentation ceremony concept originated in 2001, members of the Student Foundation Association wanted to create a unique ritual for students to share before getting their rings. The students came up with the idea of dyeing a hand purple as a way of being "dipped in pride."
The Mentor Ring program pairs students in their junior and senior years with successful SFA alumni in mentor-type relationships. Students who purchase the Mentor Ring when they reach junior status can decide whether or not to participate in the mentoring program. Since the program's start, more than 150 SFA alumni have signed on the serve as mentors. Some mentors interact with more than one student at a time.
Mitzi Blackburn, director of alumni programs for the SFA Alumni Association, said the association actively searches for alumni to serve as mentors in the program and encourages SFA faculty of staff members who want to participate to contact the association. A mentor sign-up form also is available at www.sfaalumni.com.
According to figures from the SFA Alumni Association, approximately 3,000 Mentor Rings have been sold since the official ring program launched during Homecoming 2001. The ring design incorporates symbols and features specifically chosen to capture the SFA experience.
For more information about the program or to sign up to serve as a mentor, contact the SFA Alumni Association at (936) 468-3407.
The event, which is designated as the university's official Mentor Ring presentation ceremony, will begin at noon in the Grand Ballroom of the BPSC.
In 2003, the Big Dip was institutionalized to be held on Friday of "Dead Week"- the week before final exams- of each fall and spring semester. The largest ring ceremony to date occurred in December 2006 when 191 students dipped their hand.
The "Big Dip" refers to being "dipped in pride" before students receive their Mentor Ring. When the presentation ceremony concept originated in 2001, members of the Student Foundation Association wanted to create a unique ritual for students to share before getting their rings. The students came up with the idea of dyeing a hand purple as a way of being "dipped in pride."
The Mentor Ring program pairs students in their junior and senior years with successful SFA alumni in mentor-type relationships. Students who purchase the Mentor Ring when they reach junior status can decide whether or not to participate in the mentoring program. Since the program's start, more than 150 SFA alumni have signed on the serve as mentors. Some mentors interact with more than one student at a time.
Mitzi Blackburn, director of alumni programs for the SFA Alumni Association, said the association actively searches for alumni to serve as mentors in the program and encourages SFA faculty of staff members who want to participate to contact the association. A mentor sign-up form also is available at www.sfaalumni.com.
According to figures from the SFA Alumni Association, approximately 3,000 Mentor Rings have been sold since the official ring program launched during Homecoming 2001. The ring design incorporates symbols and features specifically chosen to capture the SFA experience.
For more information about the program or to sign up to serve as a mentor, contact the SFA Alumni Association at (936) 468-3407.
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