{"id":5541,"date":"2016-05-13T19:36:26","date_gmt":"2016-05-13T19:36:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/archives.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/?p=5541"},"modified":"2023-11-28T19:59:35","modified_gmt":"2023-11-28T19:59:35","slug":"alma-mater-and-the-commencement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/2016\/05\/13\/alma-mater-and-the-commencement\/","title":{"rendered":"Alma Mater and the Commencement Connection"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Dedication<\/a>
Dedication of Alma Mater, 1929<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Written by Ellen Swain<\/strong><\/p>\n

Eighty-seven\u00a0years ago, on a warm day in June, our Alma Mater statue was unveiled as the centerpiece of the 1929 commencement week program.\u00a0 The concert band played and a host of officials gave speeches.\u00a0 UI President David Kinley prophetically declared, \u201cThe significance of this gift is for the future, what it will mean for future Illini.\u201d[1]<\/p>\n

\"President<\/a>
President David Kinley (left) and Lorado Taft in front of Taft’s Alma Mater during the sculpture’s dedication, 1929<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Surely, he had no idea how true these words would be.<\/p>\n

Sculpted by Lorado Taft (Class of 1879) and funded through the senior gifts of the classes of 1923 through 1929 and the Alumni Association, Alma was \u201ctemporarily\u201d erected behind the Auditorium (named Foellinger in 1985) until a more prominent location could be secured.\u00a0 \u00a0She remained at this spot for thirty-three years. [2]<\/p>\n

In 1962, the Alumni Association identified the perfect setting for Alma\u2014the corner of Wright and Green, her present location.\u00a0 Not everyone agreed and many felt more discussion was needed.\u00a0 A Daily Illini<\/em> reporter wrote:<\/p>\n

\"Alma<\/a>
Alma Mater is moved from Foellinger to its current location, August 20, 1962<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cAdmittedly, the site behind the Auditorium is isolated from the mainstream of campus events. But what a cheap and tawdry relocation has been suggested! The Green-Wright intersection is congested with cars, trucks, Illi-Busses, a bicycle lane, the constant roar of traffic and the blue haze of auto exhausts. No perspective, no quiet, no thoughtfulness is possible nearby. \u00a0Placing the beautiful Alma Mater in such a location seems to be a violation of all standards of good taste .\u00a0 We hope, indeed, that the Alumni Association will not move to an ultimate blasphemy and place traffic signals in the hands of Learning and Labor, providing the Alma Mater figure with a No Left Turn signboard.\u201d <\/em>[3]<\/p>\n

The move occurred in summer (August 20, 1962) with little fanfare. [4] \u00a0Except for a brief visit to Chicago for restoration in 2012-2014, Alma Mater has graced this corner ever since.<\/p>\n

\"Students<\/a>
Students have their photo taken with Alma, 2016<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Over the last decades, one of the most memorable Illinois commencement traditions is for new graduates to line up for photos in front of the Alma Mater.\u00a0 In 2010, Public Affairs made this tradition even more special by outfitting Alma in her own regalia for the occasion.<\/p>\n

Illinois’s Live Alma Cam:<\/p>\n

http:\/\/illinois.edu\/about\/almacam.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Congratulations Graduates!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

1 Daily Illini<\/em>, June 12, 1929<\/a><\/p>\n

2 University Archives Reference Files, Alma Mater folder<\/p>\n

3 Daily Illini<\/em>, June 5, 1962<\/a><\/p>\n

4 Illinois Alumni News<\/em>, October 1962<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Written by Ellen Swain Eighty-seven\u00a0years ago, on a warm day in June, our Alma Mater statue was unveiled as the centerpiece of the 1929 commencement week program.\u00a0 The concert band played and a host of officials gave speeches.\u00a0 UI President David Kinley prophetically declared, \u201cThe significance of this gift is for the future, what it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":626,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4,8],"tags":[19,20,21,73,132,189],"class_list":["post-5541","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-faqs","category-found-in-the-archives","category-university-trivia","tag-alma-cam","tag-alma-mater","tag-alma-mater-dedication","tag-commencement","tag-graduation","tag-lorado-taft"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5541","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/626"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5541"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5541\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11373,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5541\/revisions\/11373"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5541"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5541"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5541"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}