Fall Weekend: October 19 - 21

A sold-out concert by Dionne Warwick and the burial of the University’s 50th anniversary time capsule were among the highlights of a Fall Weekend that saw the campus bustling with activity.

Fall Weekend, which combines Homecoming and Parents Weekend, took on an added dimension this year as the culmination of the University’s year-long celebration of its 50th anniversary.

Legendary singer and Hartt School alumna Dionne Warwick ’63 capped off that celebration on Saturday night with a sold-out concert in Lincoln Theater. Opening for Warwick was the Jackie McLean Legacy Band, featuring faculty and students from The Hartt Schools’s Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz.

The weekend’s festivities began on Friday afternoon, with the burial of the University’s 50th anniversary time capsule, the dedication of Hawk Hall and Alumni Plaza, and the opening of the newly renovated Hawk’s Nest. Despite the gray skies and on-again, off-again rain Friday, scores of students, faculty, staff, regents, parents, and alumni filled the center of the new plaza for the event, and the University Pep Band, cheerleaders, and Howie the Hawk created a festive atmosphere amid the umbrellas.

The sleek aluminum time capsule, which is slated to be opened for the University’s 100th anniversary in 2057, contains more than 70 items, including autographed basketball jerseys, a 2007 Commencement program, a cell phone, and the latest Harry Potter book.
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Before the time capsule was buried, President Walter Harrison and Paul Sittard '85, a University regent and president of the Alumni Association, unveiled an elegant brass “H” embedded in a circle in the middle of Alumni Plaza. The “H” is a gift to the University from President Harrison.

In addition, Hawk Hall was dedicated with a speech from freshman Jessica Morrissey Duquette, a resident of the "leadership" wing of the residence hall, who said that the new facility has helped make her transition to college life an extremely positive one.

In addition to Friday afternoon's ceremony and Saturday's Dionne Warwick concert, Fall Weekend 2007 featured a wide range of activities, including reunions, sports, music, and comedy. Faculty and alumni participated in a panel discussion on the 2008 election, alumni artisans displayed and sold their work, and alumni musicians added to the festive atmosphere on the Harry Jack Gray Center Lawn Saturday. Other highlights of the weekend included a Las Vegas style casino night at The 1877 Club, and the third annual Anchor Awards, honoring distinguished alumni from each of the University’s schools and colleges.