Cabrini students, parents and alumni will be flooding the campus for Family Weekend. This weekend includes a series of events that will take place on campus and all families are invited to join in the festivities on Sept. 24-26.
From Big Prize Bingo to the State of the College address with President George, there will be something that appeals to all of Cabrini’s community.
This year, Family Weekend welcomes several new events, as well as some older ones with a twist. After each year’s Family Weekend, the weekend is reviewed and changes and improvement are made to generate a better weekend for the following year.
A new event for this year is the State of the College Address delivered by President George, now followed by the Presidential and Faculty Meet and Greet. George will discuss different aspects of change throughout the college and some of the different items that the college plans to accomplish throughout this upcoming year.
The Meet and Great creates an opportunity for students and their families to talk to faculty in an informal setting.
Another event that is new for Family Weekend is special Family Big Prize Bingo, taking place in Jazzman’s Café on Saturday. Bingo, always a popular event on campus, has been amplified with larger prizes and everyone is invited to try their hand at winning. The prizes included electronics, gift cards, combination packs and more.
Anne Filippone, director of Center for Student Engagement and Leadership, said, “I think our families will really like Big Prize Bingo as much as our students do.”
The Athletic Hall of Fame Dinner is an annual event that is always planned on the Friday evening of Family Weekend. This event takes place in the Nerney Field House within the Dixon Center and includes both a cocktail hour and a formal dinner.
This year’s dinner is special because there is only one person being inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame, John Dzik.
Dzik is the former men’s basketball head coach and director of athletics. Among many of his accomplishments, Dzik holds the winning record for men’s basketball and while in office, helped grow the athletic department.
“It was almost like a no brainer,” Jody Romano, director of Alumni Development, said. “He’s brought so much to the school and he is so well loved by alum’s. It was the right thing to do.”
President George will welcome the guests to the ceremony, followed by opening blessing by Father Carl Janicki. The dinner will proceed with four speakers and the presenting of the actual award.
One of the most noticeable and popular events at Family Weekend is the Clue Mystery Dinner Theatre, which takes place on Saturday night. The dinner is held at the Mansion and tickets must be pre-registered for.
The Clue Dinner is put together by an outside group of performers that sets the stage for this mystery to unfold. The dinner entails audience participation to hunt for clues and in the end, solve the mystery.
“Everyone has a part to play – some are smaller parts and some are larger, but it makes for a fun-filled event,” Filippone said.
The Campus Picnic is a familiar and popular event that takes place in the Commons on Saturday afternoon. With food provided by Sodexo, the picnic is a social event for all of the Cabrini community. The picnic will also consist of an array of activities including caricaturists, a magician and big chair photos.
Joining the Cabrini community is The Greater Kensington String Band that will be performing during the picnic to provide live music for the event.
The Honors Convocation taking place on Saturday morning is being held in the Grace Hall Atrium. This ceremony displays those students who have exhibited academic excellence in the past semester.
The convocation honors to those students who made Dean’s list, were named to the College’s Honor Society, and the received of the Academic Honesty Award.
Though Family Weekend is only three days long, the planning goes back to last September. Many people work long and hard to make sure these events will run smoothly and be enjoyable for all of the Cabrini community.
Filippone said, “We really begin outlining the schedule in January & February, and try to finalize things as much as possible by the end of June, so that the brochure can be put together and mailed to families. “
But it is not only SEaL that is running this show. SEaL also works with several other on-campus groups to bring all these different activities together into one event.
Along with SEaL, Institutional Advancement, Athletics, Marketing and Communications, Campus Ministry and Academic Affairs all work collectively to put Family Weekend together.
Students who are interested in getting involved with Family Weekend are encouraged to contact the SEaL office or email Anne Filippone directly at af727@cabrini.edu.
