By Caitlin Opperman

Dressing up for candy may sound a little bit like Halloween, but that’s exactly what students did the week of October 6 to celebrate the return of Macalester Homecoming. Themed days included Pajama Day, Go Green Day, Down to Business Day and Twin Day, with students wearing Mac colors on Friday to round out the school week. Students who showed their school spirit received candy from Mac the Scot.
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“I especially liked Go Green Day because I thought it was kind of unique to the atmosphere of Macalester,” Mikayla Mehle ’12 said.The Kilt Krew, which put on the event, also hosted Capture the Flag and kickball and encouraged students to attend sporting events throughout the week.

While some students went all out, others were less involved in the festivities.

“I think there’s a big enough divide between the athletic side of campus and everyone else as it is,” Lauren Ackerman ’10 said. “It seemed like a cool idea in theory but publicity wasn’t that great.”

Homecoming Week also coincided with the Step Forward alumni weekend, which increased attendance at Saturday afternoon’s Homecoming football game versus St. Scholastica, a game the Scots won 27-21 in overtime.

The “Greek Mythology: Hades & Olympus” Homecoming Dance in Kagin brought the week to a close.

Despite a lack of interest in Homecoming in past years, organizers felt Homecoming 2008 was a success.

“The Kilt Krew decided to have a Homecoming because we just wanted to bring back a sense of tradition to Macalester,” Kilt Krew President Eric Engstrom ’11 said. “Obviously, with it being the first year of the “new and improved” Homecoming, it was a little hard getting the ideas out there, but people really seemed to enjoy the candy at lunch and the general feel of the week.”

Thuto Thipe ’10 agreed. “I think it’s a good idea to promote school spirit as much as possible.”

After receiving feedback on this year’s event, Kilt Krew already has plans to improve next year’s Homecoming.

“I would like to make it bigger, better and more inclusive,” Kilt Krew member Amanda Cagan ’10 said. “We want the school to feel like home, we want our community to show support for each other and, basically, be proud to be a Scot. Homecoming is an event where people can blatantly express their spirit for our school, and this, I hope, is enough to get everyone to participate and want to help out in the years to come.