By Ryan Broderick, Editor-in-Chief

As far as our records show, the Chronicle has always abstained from the homecoming parade. But after 75 years it seemed like it was time for our staff to finally get into the homecoming spirit and give float-building a try.

It was taxing. The hours were long for our already stressed staff and it cost us good chunk of our own money, but we’re pretty proud of ourselves.

We came in second-to-last.

You can call it an exercise in participatory journalism. Maybe we weren’t trying to make a float; maybe we were doing a story on what it’s like to actually be in homecoming. It was an experiment, a page ripped right from Tom Wolfe’s handbook. No, that’s not entirely true, but it did give us a crash course in float-building.

I dare you to find something on campus done with more care, love, hard work and just general creativity than the fraternities, sororities and clubs that do homecoming every year.

If only the graphic design department knew what we saw girls doing with glitter- absolute works of art. Theta Tau, the engineering fraternity, creates a minor masterpiece of school-pride-related animatronics every year. SGA, Phi Sigma Sigma and Sigma Alpha Mu built a 700lb boat. That’s outrageous, and it’s a damn shame more of the University’s student body didn’t show up to see it.

But I suppose things like a homecoming parade are old hat, or maybe it’s just too early for most college students to wake up. God knows it was a struggle for us. But either way, for people that didn’t see the parade it’s unfortunate, but nothing more than that.

It didn’t help us get a job, it didn’t get us better grades – in fact, it probably hurt our grades – and in the long run it really doesn’t do anything more than share a bit of school spirit. And hey, if you pay $40,000 a year to go to a place, I’d hope you like it.

I won’t be editor-in-chief next year, but I hope The Chronicle does it again. It’s important to remind people you’re part of the community you cover, if only to show a bit of solidarity on the one day of the year it counts.

The Chronicle joins the Hofstra Community in Homecoming Celebrations for the first time in the club’s history. (Laura Molinari)