Committee welcomes alumni back to campus, homecoming
One festive weekend, one big blow out, and one fabulous Homecoming committee to welcome alumni back to campus.
Chances are you already know the committee members, but allow us to introduce them. (And please, RSVP to let them know you’ll be on campus Oct. 7-8.)
Illustration alumna Estella Hickman is a 1972 graduate.
A second Illustration alumna, Evangelia Philippidis, is an active member of the class of 1981. In addition to her Homecoming contributions, she is pitching in to assist with the 1974 class reunion.
Marcia Tabler majored in Advertising & Graphic Design, graduating in 1974.
Another Advertising & Graphic Design alum is Jeff Stahler, class of 1977.
The committee member with the shortest "alum" status is David E. Merz III, a 2011 Advertising & Graphic Design graduate now living in Chicago.
Even though Merz has only been away for a few months, he wants to see for himself if anything has changed on campus (besides the new students!) and he hopes to catch up with several professors to ask questions he has been wondering about since being “in the real world.”
“At Homecoming I'm most looking forward to seeing my friends from school. I've missed staying up late with my Mighty All-Nighter friends. I've been getting the word out about the event so I can see as many of them as possible during the short weekend,” Merz said
“It'll be great to see my friends who have also graduated, but I'm excited to see those friends I left behind who are still burning the midnight oil at CCAD, especially those working in Design Group," he said.
Merz said he received a few messages on the first day of the semester from friends who miss hanging out with him on the quad or at the Market, and he confesses to missing CCAD’s main dining facility. “Looking back, it was a great deal for getting food,” he said.
As an underclassman, Merz was involved with Student Government. He plans to check out what the new officers have in mind to enhance the college experience for current students.
Merz said he’s curious to see who the alumni award winner will be and what he will “have to do someday to be considered for such an award!”
“I wish I could be back for an entire week instead of just a couple of days. I miss Columbus and all the great people there. The people are the best!”
Stahler moved back to Columbus a few years ago, so he is no stranger to campus. “It's exciting when it's filled with alumni who have built this campus into a growing, progressive, smart, contemporary school with a still-strong foundation program,” he said.
Stahler commented on the changes to the annual gathering. “I look forward to the new fall Homecoming. Traditionally, the spring graduation on the heels of the annual fashion show makes for a busy campus and not much time to catch up with college friends.”
Facebook has brought Stahler closer to alumni, but he said “seeing someone in person and catching up with them is always a good time.”
When Tabler heard that CCAD was combining Homecoming and Family Weekend she decided it was time for a class reunion.
“Although it has (ha ha!) been only 37 years, not the big 40—the power of all this coming together felt right. So, the class of ’74 is plowing forward with the reunion as well as a few surprises!” she said.
Read more about the class of 1974 reunion.