Monmouth College's Class of 2020 is pictured at their matriculation ceremony on Wallace Hall Plaza in 2016.
MONMOUTH, ILLINOIS (October 20, 2021) — Two of the biggest weekends at Monmouth College each year are Homecoming and Commencement.
This year those major events will happen on the same weekend.
Monmouth College's Homecoming weekend is October 22-24, with its usual variety of activities, including award ceremonies, reunions, a parade, a football game and other home Fighting Scots events, pre-game gatherings and two concerts.
But the final day of the celebration is also a "coming home" for the Class of 2020, which did not have the opportunity for a traditional Commencement ceremony because of the pandemic. A rescheduled ceremony later that fall was also canceled because of a resurgence in local COVID cases.
About 70 members of the class are expected to return to campus for the Commencement ceremony, which will be held at 11AM, Sunday, October 24, on the Wallace Hall Plaza. The featured speaker will be a member of the class, former Student Senate president Maggie Bruckner. The rain site is the Huff Athletic Center fieldhouse.
October 22 events
The induction of Illinois State Sen Mattie Hunter ('76) and renowned phrenologist Dr Frederick Kaskel ('67) into the Hall of Achievement — the highest honor the College bestows upon its graduates — will be part of the Alumni Impact Awards ceremony, which will be held at 5:30PM, Friday, October 22, in the Huff Center.
Others to be honored at the Alumni Impact Awards ceremony are: farmer and agriculture industry advocate Wendell Shauman ('67), Distinguished Alumnus; College Editor and Historian Jeff Rankin, Distinguished Service; Philadelphia Eagles assistant coach Alex Tanney ('11), Distinguished Young Alumnus; and the Sondgeroth family, Family of the Year. Chemistry professor Laura Moore will be presented with the Hatch Academic Excellence Award for Distinguished Teaching.
At 3PM in the Everett Gallery in Hewes Library, a reception will be held for four of the artists featured in the current exhibit of prints by University of Iowa graduate students. They will give a gallery talk at 3:30PM.
At 4PM, a dedication ceremony will be held for the College's new labyrinth, which was recently installed behind Wallace Hall.
The Fighting Scots volleyball team has a pair of home games over the weekend, with a Friday game against Lawrence University at 7PM in Glennie Gym. The Scots will return to the court Saturday at 11:30AM to meet Ripon College.
The Homecoming spirit shout will begin at 8PM at April Zorn Memorial Stadium. The traditional celebration, which will feature competition by student organizations and the introduction of Homecoming royalty, will conclude with a fireworks display.
October 23 events
The Saturday, October 23, events will begin at 8:30AM when two former athletes and a former coach will be inducted into the M Club Hall of Fame. The ceremony for national pole vault champion Peter Sprecher ('08), championship-winning coach Kathy Wagoner, and All-American linebacker Justin Zigler ('06) will be held in the Huff Center fieldhouse.
In conjunction with the event, a memorial for the late swim coach Tom Burek will be unveiled and dedicated. Burek died last year of complications caused by COVID-19. His two daughters will speak prior to the start of the induction ceremony.
The Homecoming parade on East Broadway between Sixth Street and Ninth Street will begin at 10AM. Sponsored by the Association for Student Activity Programming, it will include the Monmouth College Pipe Band and Fighting Scots Marching Band.
At 11AM, the sixth annual Fraternity and Sorority Life Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held in Mellinger Commons. Slated to receive acceptance into the Hall of Fame are Gena Corbin Alcorn ('88), Jeff Bakker ('90), David Danner ('91), and the late Louise Lauder Roos ('49).
A cookout for faculty and alumni will be held from noon-2PM on the east hilltop overlooking April Zorn Memorial Stadium, and the Homecoming football game against Cornell College will follow with a special kick-off time of 2PM. Marching-band alumni are invited to bring their instruments and join the Fighting Scots Marching Band in the stands.
Monmouth's soccer teams will also be in action, hosting Beloit College at Peacock Memorial Athletic Park. The women will kick off at 11AM, with the men's game to follow at 1:30PM.
Reunions will be held throughout the weekend for the classes of 1980-81, 1985-86, 1990-91, 1995-96, 2000-01, 2005-06, 2010-11, 2015-16, and 2020.
A concert featuring the Chorale, the Chamber Choir and the Concert Choir will be presented at 7:30PM in Dahl Chapel and Auditorium.
October 24 events
In addition to the Commencement ceremony for the Class of 2020 at 11AM, a Wind Ensemble concert will be presented at 2PM in Dahl Chapel.
For the schedule of events: www.monmouthcollege.edu/homecoming.
