Scarlet and Grace Notes A Capella sings “Hang on Sloopy” during the Light Up the Lake event Thursday, Dec. 2, 2021. Credit: Gabe Haferman
As Ohio State students face the colder months, yearly events on campus have given both past and present students Buckeye traditions to experience.
Established in 1870, Ohio State has a rich history of traditions. Some have died out, continued into 2023 or recently began.
White Christmas
According to a November 1965 edition of “Campus Review” by James E. Pollard, obtained from the University Archives, an event titled “White Christmas” was listed as a tradition centered around the “production of Handel’s ‘Messiah’ with chorus and a full orchestra.” The event first began in 1916, according to Lantern archives, sometimes consisting of over 350 singers each year.
According to the archives, the event centered around “war relief,” and there was a Christmas tree “decorated with electric lights.”
“For some years this was held in the Men’s Gymnasium and is now staged in St. John Arena,” Pollard said in the article. “It was mid-way in such a program that word was received on the campus of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.”
The White Christmas program no longer exists on campus, but in the same 1965 edition of “Campus Review,” Ohio Staters Inc. is listed as an organization of note.
Light Up the Lake
Ohio Staters Inc. is still an operating organization operating on campus today and hosts the annual event Light Up the Lake, established in 2003, most recently held Dec. 1, 2022.
Emily Schwegman, treasurer of Ohio Staters Inc. and a third-year in finance, said the organization looks to promote the traditions and welfare of the university.
“For Light Up the Lake, we do this with an annual event where we hang seasonal lights around Mirror Lake Hollow and Browning Amphitheater,” Schwegman said. “We have a big event with student groups performing, and it’s become a tradition since we started doing it. And students seem to really look forward to it.”
Schwegman said it was “crazy” to her that “so few people” could put this event together. Ohio Staters Inc. is made of just 36 students and 14 faculty and staff members each year.
Schwegman said the event has grown since it was first established.
“In recent years, we have gotten a lot more participation,” Schwegman said. “I think we’ve gotten a lot more people attending it because we have more student groups coming now. We think we had around 2-3,000 students this past year in 2022. But that’s just an estimate.”
Taste of OSU
Another long-standing tradition returning this year is Taste of OSU — an event hosting 15 student organizations and their cuisine, along with showcasing approximately 20 student performances, according to the Office of International Affairs Website.
The event, which started in 1997, will take place Feb. 17 from 5-8:30 p.m. in the Archie M. Griffin Ballroom within the Ohio Union.
Admission to the event is free, but students may purchase additional tickets for food or cultural items for $1 starting Feb. 14 at the Union information desk and in the Enarson Classroom Building. Tickets will also be available for purchase in the Great Hall Meeting Room during the event.
Mia Miller, student chair of Taste of OSU and a fourth-year in international studies, said the event was inspiring to her before she even became a student.
“It took over the whole Union, and I remember coming and standing and watching the performances while I was eating some food and getting to talk to OSU students,” Miller said. “It was just an amazing experience, and I kind of fell in love with the whole event.”
Taste of OSU is a vital space for inclusion, Miller said.
“That’s just something I’ve always been passionate about is like creating spaces where people feel included and heard and celebrated,” Miller said. “That’s exactly what Taste of OSU does, is it creates that space for people to be authentic to themselves into their cultures and get to share who they are with everyone else and really open the floor for communication and genuine connection.”
Maureen Miller, director of communications at the Office of International Affairs, said she thinks the event “provides a platform for students to express” their cultures and traditions.
“It’s also a great leadership opportunity for students,” Miller said. “And, you know, we’re constantly amazed by the creativity, the energy and hospitality demonstrated by the participating student organizations.”
For more information, visit the event’s website.
African American Heritage Festival
Later in February, the Center for Belonging and Social Change will host the 45th African American Heritage Festival from Feb. 24 to March 4. According to the Heritage Festival website, the upcoming festival centers around “Umoja,” the Swahili word for Unity.
There are eight separate events hosted by the festival, including a Gospel Fest, Word on the Street, Poetry Showcase and Variety Show. The full schedule is available on its website.
Bethany Massenburg-Jackson, the festival’s co-overall chair and a third-year in electrical engineering, said the event initially began as a block party during Black History Month in the 1970s.
“Throughout the years, it has morphed and changed, but still remains true to the roots of celebrating African Americans and Ohio State’s campus community,” Massenburg-Jackson said.
Massenburg-Jackson said she appreciates how the festival brings students together.
“I loved the experience because it was nice to see people like, I guess, you’re mutuals with on Instagram or just people you haven’t seen maybe since freshman year and know you’re all attending the same event and just celebrating your Blackness as well,” Massenburg-Jackson said.
Massenburg-Jackson said although it has been 45 years, the festival still stays true to its initial mission to hold a space for Black students on campus to celebrate Black History Month.
Off The Lake Productions Spring Musical
Off The Lake Productions, the university’s student-run theater group, will be performing “Freaky Friday” as its annual spring musical between March 23 and April 2 in the Lawrence Tower Ballroom, according to its website. Admission for the show is $1 or a canned good. According to its website, the $1 will be donated to The Kaleidoscope Youth Center — a nonprofit Columbus organization that supports LGBTQ+ youth — and the canned goods will be donated to The Mid Ohio Food Bank, according to its website.
Christine Monsour, musical director for OTL and a fourth-year in psychology, said in an email the organization takes pride in being the only non-profit, student-run and service-based theater organization for the past 26 years. Kicking off the tradition with “Into the Woods” in 1997, the organization has performed for the community each year except the 2020-21 season due to COVID-19.
“OTL prides itself on being an organization that is committed to providing service outreach to the Ohio State and Columbus communities,” Monsour said.
According to its website, OTL performed “Heathers the Musical” to a sold out crowd, raising $5,352 for the Kaleidoscope Youth Center and donating 372 cans to the food bank.
Monsour said OTL has a special impact on the community.
“When OSU students come to our shows, I believe they can see not only the talent and magic that happens on stage, but also how connected we are as an ensemble of artists,” Monsour said.
