No Matter When You Get Your Button, on I.S. Monday It's Time to Celebrate

Hundreds of Wooster seniors claim their piece of a great tradition

View I.S. Monday 2012 photo gallery

WOOSTER, Ohio, March 26, 2012 - The first two Independent Studies of 2012 may have been handed in more than a month ago — I.S. button number one went to an English major and number two to a French major, both on Feb. 14 — but on I.S. Monday, it doesn’t matter whether you finished last month, last week, or at five minutes to five. It only matters that you’ve completed one of the most challenging and rewarding projects you’ve ever taken on, a mentored undergraduate research experience like no other, and it’s time to celebrate.

And celebrate the Class of 2012 did, as the I.S. Parade roared out of Kauke arch at 5 p.m., behind a half dozen pipers and three drummers. Brandishing foam swords and light sabers and at least one small plush unicorn head on a stick, they plunged into a gauntlet of cheering friends lined up three deep all the way down to University Street, which slowed and strung out the line of march considerably. The pipers were probably working on their second slices of pizza at Kittredge Hall before the last of the marchers made the turn onto Pine Street.

There weren’t as many over-the-top costumes as in some years, although the four shirtless guys wearing matching shorts and suspenders, one of them playing an accordion, deserve special mention, as does the fellow in full rock-climbing harness and helmet, with a coil of rope draped around his neck. But there were hats. Oh boy, were there hats. Cowboy hats and top hats, little plastic sombreros and big straw sombreros.  Red-white-and-blue Uncle Sam hats and tri-cornered pirate hats (worn, appropriately enough, by a history major whose I.S. dealt with pirates). There was even an orange hardhat that had sprouted antlers.

This was the first I.S. Monday to be tweeted extensively, and for alumni, family, and friends looking to share the moment, Twitter offered a window into the festivities.

Students kept up a running commentary during the day (“I keep forgetting that there’s glitter in my hair. I feel like I went to a ke$ha concert”) while alums offered congratulations (“So proud of my friends in @WoosterEdu class of 2012! ISMonday. Wearing my shirt and pin from last year!”) and reminisced (“3 years ago today was one of the best days of my life. Thanks @WoosterEdu”)

Toward evening, one senior summed it all up, in 118 characters:

“What a day…wouldn’t do anything different with the last 4 years, today is why I went to this school #ismonday #wooster”