MOUNT HOLYOKE COLLEGE
COMMENCEMENT TRADITIONS

SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. — A number of activities related to commencement, including receptions, open houses, campus tours, worship services, and fireworks, will be held in the days before commencement, scheduled for 10:30 AM on Sunday, May 25. Among the oldest and most cherished traditions are the Laurel Chain Ceremony, scheduled for 9 AM on Saturday, May 24, and the Canoe Sing, to be held the same day at 10:30 PM on Upper Lake. Details on these two traditions follow.

SATURDAY, MAY 24, 2003
Laurel Parade—9:00 AM

Continuing a tradition more than a century old, members of the class of 2003 will symbolically and physically join the ranks of alumnae in this event, which begins at 9 AM at Woolley Circle and ends at College founder Mary Lyon's grave. Cheered by friends, alumnae, and family, participants will be linked shoulder-to-shoulder by laurel chain, which they will weave around the iron fence around Mary Lyon’s Grave. There, they will sing "Bread and Roses," the anthem of textile workers who struck the Lawrence, Massachusetts, mills in 1912, demanding reasonable and humane working hours and pay. The song is considered symbolic of the support of women that Mount Holyoke represents.

Participants in the parade will be dressed in white as a sign of solidarity, and because white is the color that women wore when campaigning for the right to vote. Most of the class will dress formally, but many seniors have created white outfits that let them express themselves while still adhering to the tradition of the parade.

Canoe Sing—10:30 PM

Canoe Sing is one of Mount Holyoke’s most casual and fun traditions. It dates back to 1911, when it was called “Senior Serenade,” and takes place on Upper Lake. During Canoe Sing, twelve canoes decorated with lanterns illuminate Upper Lake while changing formations. At the same time, seniors in canoes and on the shore sing previously rehearsed songs.

There will be twelve canoes, each seating three people chosen by lottery. The majority of the class will line the banks of Upper Lake to sing.