by Kaitlyn Hladik '25 on October 6, 2022
News Staff
Campus
Homecoming is a tradition for Providence College. Friartown welcomed alumni, families and friends of current students, prospective students, and various community members to campus. Homecoming 2022 began on Friday, Sept. 30 with Dueling Piano in McPhail’s, “Friartown After Dark” featuring Eric O’Shea in Mullaney Gym, and the classic Food Truck Friday.
Saturday hosted the main schedule of events. The Friar 5K, which circled the campus starting at Harkins Hall and concluded at Ray Treacy Track, kicked off the day early in the morning. The race benefits the Providence College National Alumni Association Scholarship fund.
The rain did not prohibit the 5K or the rest of Saturday’s events from running smoothly, although the outdoor activities were slightly under-attended. Other events included Friar Fest on Slavin and Aquinas Lawns, Friars of Color: Connecting Past and Present in Moore Hall, and men’s hockey versus Western Ontario in Schneider Arena.
Friar Fest, a Providence College Homecoming classic, was open to students, families, friends, and alumni for lawn games, entertainment, and food trucks. The Friars of Color event included a variety of on-campus groups like OLAS, BMSA, Footprints, Women Empowered, and the Black Studies Department. There were student performances, an alumni panel, and lots of community. Some featured alumni included: Shameem Awan ’96, Lagina Bickham, D.M.D. ’88, Jon Mason ’96, Adetola Abiade ’95, K. Anthony Thomas, Esq. ’89, and Monica Womack, MBA ’91. The National Alumni Association vice president also gave remarks.
The highlight of the weekend for most students (aside from the visits from their families) was Late Night Madness featuring Khalid. This was the first event that PC held in the newly named Amica Mutual Pavilion, previously known as the Dunkin’ Donuts Center. Khalid, a multi-platinum and Grammy Award nominated artist took the stage after special performances by on campus groups, such as a capella, Providence College Dance Team, Dance Company, Dance Club, the Irish Dance Team, and introductions to the men’s and women’s basketball teams!
The weekend finished off on Sunday, Oct. 2 with Homecoming Mass celebrated by College President Rev. Kenneth R. Sicard, O.P. ’78, ’83G. The Hillbilly Thomists performed at Homecoming brunch, following Mass, where attendees could enjoy live music and mingle with the Dominican community.
Christina Mascolo ’22, the president of the Student Alumni Association, a group that aids in events such as reunions and Homecoming Weekend to facilitate in creating and fostering relationships between Friars, past, present, and future, shares her thoughts on Providence Homecoming.
Mascolo says, “Homecoming is one of my favorite weekends of the semester! It’s so fun to see campus busy with past, present, and future Friars!”
Dean of Students and Vice President of Student Affairs Steven Sears shared an affectionate email to the students prior to Homecoming weekend, encapsulating the feeling shared among all Friars, friends, and families on and around campus. He classifies Homecoming weekend as a time for students to allow “parents and guests to ‘live’ through them, with them, in them, and truly experience a Homecoming like no other.” He offered many ideas of what to spend the weekend doing. He stated: “Bring them around campus, off and on. Go to an event, program, share a snack at a food truck, Ray, attend the hockey game, show them a classroom. Let them behold the beauty and serenity of the Chapel, pray. Let them see, let them know, and let them absorb your greatness! Let them revel in a day in the life of a Friar, so that when the weekend has passed and they walk away, they will have felt that this is their home, too.”
Dean Sears embodies the spirit of Homecoming weekend and how wonderful it was for all Friars to share this experience and reunite with their families.
Like Mascolo and Sears said, along with the reactions of the hundreds of Friars and Friar family members that visited campus, Homecoming is a fantastic experience and a foundational Providence College event.