Headline News

One of the girls dropped out, so
there were only four girls involved in
the project.

The picture above is of the Maroon girl's TV interview.  My granddaughter Megan is of course the one with the dark hair :)  Below is a copy of what was written in the newspapers about The Power of Maroon Day.  I'm a little late with this article, but as I always say, better late than never :)

POWER OF MAROON DAY MARCH 21 TO UNITE CAMPUS, COMMUNITY

                RICHMOND, Ky. – It might be flu season, but a group of five Eastern Kentucky University communication studies majors are working to spread a different kind of fever.

                The students are organizing The Power of Maroon Day for Wednesday, March 21, a time set aside to show pride in the university and celebrate the ties that bind campus and community.

                From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the Powell Corner in the center of campus, the campus community can enjoy refreshments, games, music, special speakers, and drawings for door prizes, particularly EKU clothing items. Students, faculty and staff are asked to wear maroon or some sort of EKU accessory that day. Throughout the community, merchants are being asked to show their Eastern pride by asking employees to wear maroon attire, donate items to be given away at the campus and/or display appropriate signage.

                The Power of Maroon Day celebration stems from a student project in a communication studies class taught by Dr. John Strada. Students Audrey Smith, Emily Whitt, Megan Malear, Jannell Sargent and Rebecca Gnadinger began planning for the day in October 2011. The event has received the endorsement of EKU President Doug Whitlock and the university, the Richmond Chamber of Commerce and Richmond Mayor Jim Barnes.

                For Smith, a senior communication studies major from Manchester, the mission is personal.

                “For me, this is the second time around,” Smith said. “I came here several years ago, quit and came back. I am so glad to have this opportunity at EKU and if everybody felt the way I did about EKU, we’d have a much bigger campus. We wanted to share our feelings and make it contagious.

                “So far,” she added, “the response has been positive, so I have a good feeling we’ll have a lot of participation. We want to paint the town maroon.”

                Whitt, a senior communication studies major from Richmond, said: “I feel like Eastern is such a great school, and people need to be excited about where they’re going to school. This event is a great opportunity for not only EKU but also Richmond to be involved in something exciting.”

                For more information about the event or to learn more about donating items, contact Smith at audrey_smith17@mymail.eku.edu, Whitt at emily_whitt4@mymail.eku.edu, or Malear at megan_malear@mymail.eku.edu.