Alumni Reunion Day, traditionally held on the first Saturday of February, is both a very joyful and a little sad holiday. Joyful because, seeing faces that have become family over many years of study, your soul returns to childhood and youth.
And he is sad because time flies inexorably fast, and with each subsequent meeting this is felt more strongly. Any educational institution usually has its own holiday traditions. Already weeks and even months in advance, active preparations for meetings begin; social media, searches for friends and classmates are organized.
It seems that childhood itself, somewhere in the corners of the heart, freezes in anticipation of meeting the past. And the charge of fun, optimism and energy that such meetings give gives strength, makes you strive for new heights and remains in the memory for a long time as a vivid, pleasant impression.
The history of Alumni Day and why it is celebrated on February 2, 2019
The tradition of celebrating the reunion after one or more years of graduation goes back to the founding of the first universities.
The European University of Bologna became the progenitor of all educational institutions. In the 11th century, Italians began to celebrate university graduation dates. It was easier for graduates of those times to defend their interests and survive in the complex medieval world in organized groups.
In the 12th century, a similar educational institution was opened in the capital of France, and in 1117 - Oxford University. The custom of dating some time after graduation has been preserved and gained momentum.
In Russia, since 1544, this general tradition has been supported by the Albertina University of Königsberg (modern Kaliningrad).
Graduates of our time gather annually to congratulate teachers, communicate and have fun.
This year's homecoming evening will take place on Saturday, February 2. Often this event turns into an evening of memories of past school years, pranks, successes and failures. Many bring school photographs, which are interesting to observe when children are growing up, or their range of interests, etc.
Homecoming Day and interesting facts about it
In the United States, the first reunion of Blanche Miller School alumni took place 70 years later. Only 45% of former students survived and were able to attend this event.
In Cherokee County, the Class of 1929 met annually. In 2003, only 9 people attended the meeting, although 30 graduates of that year lived to see this date.
The absolute record holder for the number of graduates was the Indian city Montessori school (Lukanu) in 2004. Then 27,911 people left its walls.
The tradition of meeting former students originated in Germany. Once, for the 100th anniversary of the opening of the local school, more than 2.5 thousand former students gathered.
Translated from Greek, the word “teacher” means “leading the child.” In ancient times, this was the name given to slaves whose duties included taking children to and from school.
The first Russian school opened during the reign of Peter I. Its students were boys from 12 to 17 years old.
Selecting the date for Homecoming Day
As such, Graduate Day does not officially exist in Russia. The reason for the meeting could be some important date related to the educational institution. For example, it could be the anniversary of a school or university. In addition, graduates of one course or group can choose their own day on which they will meet annually.
It is worth noting that a bill has already been sent to the State Duma, which proposed officially introducing such a holiday as Alumni Reunion Day. It is currently being discussed and the most suitable date is being selected. According to social surveys, setting a specific date for the meeting was supported by 80% of the population. Considering that many are traveling to different cities, or even countries, such a date would make preparations for this event easier. For now, they adhere to the date set for the first Saturday.
This particular date appeared due to the fact that at this time school graduates return home after the winter session. Returning to their native places, they of course wanted to see their childhood school friends and talk about their successes. So the first Saturday in February is the best time for this.
It is interesting that sometimes this meeting is also called “Stodnevka”. This is due to the fact that there are approximately 100 days left until the next graduation.
How to celebrate Graduation Day
Each class or graduation takes an individual approach to organizing such an event as a reunion years later. If this is initiated by an educational institution, then the meeting can be held within its walls. First, the official part is organized, and then a banquet for each class. You can also prepare a special wall newspaper in which past years are remembered.
On this evening, matured former girls and boys who spent the best years of their lives within these walls remember the past and share their successes in the present.
If a small group or class meets, then you can go to a restaurant, or to someone’s dacha. Relationships in the past and how pleasant it is to meet again with people from the past have a huge impact on how the meeting goes.
Video: how to organize an alumni meeting yourself?
The day (or even the evening) of the meeting of school graduates in Russia, as well as in the “brotherly” countries that were formerly part of the USSR, is celebrated every year on the first Saturday of February.
If in 2015 the first Saturday of February fell on February 7, 2015, That 2016 meeting evening will February 6, 2016.
How are alumni meetings held?
On this day it is customary to attend an educational institution. Schools usually have an official part with a speech by the director; often students themselves prepare concert numbers for visiting graduates. After the ceremonial part, the guests gather in their class and communicate with class teacher, or choose another place to socialize, such as a cafe.
Regarding the continuation of the banquet outside the walls of your home school, it would be useful advice - take care of reserving seats in a cafe, bar or restaurant in advance. Don’t even get your hopes up - there will be no empty seats anywhere on the evening of the meeting.
If this day is a holiday for graduates, then for teachers it is also a serious preparation, because they need to organize a concert and prepare themselves and the office.
The day of the meeting is a day of memories, so you can take school photographs with you, prepare competitions that will help you remember your school years, funny stories, and you must not forget to simply thank your school friends and teachers.
What date is the meeting of university graduates:
Meeting days are celebrated both by graduates of secondary and vocational educational institutions - schools, colleges, and higher educational institutions - institutes, universities. Only universities do not have such a single date as for schools. Each university chooses its own date. This can be either the first Saturday in July or September, or the last Saturday in August.
Every year on the first Saturday of February, the bell rings in the schools of our country and it is not boys and girls who appear on the doorstep, but completely grown-up respectable men and beautiful ladies. This day is called Homecoming Day, when students who graduated from school long ago, having said goodbye to their youth, come back to their native walls to see familiar faces, recognize the one with whom they sat at the same desk for 10 years, present flowers and shower words of gratitude to their beloved class teacher.
The evening of the meeting reminds of youth, first love, first confessions and kisses, notes across desks, a blackboard rubbed with soap, and buttons on the teacher’s chair. Even years later, when they come to school, former students seem to be immersed in childhood, making promises to each other, exchanging news. Some people brag about how they went abroad, others about how they raise children, or do business or creative work. The whole atmosphere of the holiday is saturated with memories and everywhere one hears “Do you remember?”, “How are you?”, “Where do you live?”, “Are there any children?” etc.
Homecoming Day is a tradition passed on from one school generation to another. At the same time, a cheerful and sad holiday shows us how fleeting time is, how years fly by and people change. Moreover, with each celebration this is felt more and more. But such an event is an excellent occasion to see former friends, girlfriends, roommates again and just spend a pleasant evening in the circle of once close people.
Homecoming Day 2020 - Congratulations
The school remains somewhere far away,
Many years have passed since then
When life was bright and easy for us,
When I met a spacious school yard.
And we'll meet today, friends,
And we will remember our youth!
I wish you good luck on this day
And wish you good health!
Let's pour strong wine into glasses,
And we will remember the teachers!
Ah, the wonderful time of school!
Today we will talk about her!
Without unnecessary tears, without unnecessary words
I want to congratulate
Today to all graduates,
We were like family!
Yes, many years have passed since then
How we graduated!
But years are just nonsense
When hearts are full
Enthusiasm, vivacity, kindness -
The soul wants to sing!
I'm happy to see you, friends,
Look at you all!
Today we finally meet
We are former graduates!
Our eyes touch each other,
There are lights shining in the eyes.
We had so much in common
At least we were not alike!
I know they were all good
And everyone is born for happiness!
Please accept my congratulations,
Let you, old friends,
Warmth and luck await you in life,
Always be happy!
Let's remember the past, let's remember the beautiful,
The years have passed, but not in vain...
How we were friends, how worried we were,
How we tried to get all the "A's"
How we wanted to grow up quickly,
Finish school and fly away...
How quickly it all ended suddenly:
We have forgotten our friends and girlfriends...
Only now I really want it again
Timidly enter the doors of your native class!
There is a special date in February,
She has a rich memory of school.
About carefree, golden days,
About classmates and teachers.
Years fly by, but feelings do not age.
We are together again and we are a little warmer.
We are boys and girls again for the evening,
Only one evening - our school meeting.
Hooray! We gathered together
Through years, time, distances.
We've been waiting for this meeting,
We got over the breakup.
How the boys have matured
How amazing the girls are
Having exchanged trousers for trousers,
Replacing skirts with dresses.
How much shines in the eyes
Mind and worldly wisdom.
Gray hair is visible,
A little bit of army bearing.
How our ladies have changed!
We were children only yesterday,
Today many here are mothers,
There are children waiting for their own at home.
We met! And this is joy
And this is happiness and delight!
Let's cry, we'll be a little moved.
Thanks to everyone who was able to come!
Once upon a time we were one family,
Now everyone has their own path,
And sometimes only memories
We are transported to school through the years.
But this evening brought us together,
Your faces shine with smiles,
Times are rising before our eyes,
When we happened to study together.
Serious words from teachers
Childish pranks, rulers.
And how they rushed to the dining room quickly,
When the bell rang for recess.
So let that time live in your heart,
Filling us with love from the inside,
And even if many years pass
Memories will warm us with warmth!
We studied together many years ago.
We will say “Hello” to each other. A tear will shine.
The February wind will carry away fragments of phrases:
“Do you remember...?”, “Physics lesson...”, “Our ball...”, “Our class...”.
And the kaleidoscope will return the memory to the country,
Where is childhood in the rain, but without an umbrella.
Where our friendly laughter rings like a bell.
And the school attracts everyone today like a magnet.
I wish now you and I
Remain a light reflection on the board,
Or become a notebook sheet in September,
To see a shadow in your window.
Thank you, time, for a magical day!
Alas, this meeting is in a fairyland
We are allowed only in February...
Hi all! Forget about the burden
Years gone by, my favorite class!
We're lost in time now
And let our loved ones not look for us,
From everyday problems to the holidays,
Unfurling the scarlet sail in my soul,
We, afraid of being called out,
We are rushing to the warm country of childhood,
Where dreams rain down in bright splashes,
Where are the blinding rays of happiness,
Where we fool around with noisy squeals
And we lose the keys to the house,
Where are the notes with confessions first?
In ardent feelings they are funny and sweet,
Where we were kind and faithful,
And a childish soul is bright...
So let's never grow old
In this fabulous children's paradise!
And we'll try to see you again,
We smile at each other like that.
Let's meet, Friends!
So that kind words remember school.
To remember everything - love, jokes -
Let's meet, Friends!
How quickly the school world is forgotten,
Forgotten childhood perceptions,
We were at school, sisters, brothers...
Everyday life divides us.
Maybe it's worth keeping in touch
And help each other in everything.
Find a friend, girlfriend
And don't let go anywhere.
We were a family for ten years,
But now life has scattered us.
And the day of the meeting is too little,
Since there is no common spirit anymore.
And yet this meeting will be
And there is no escape from them...
Friends! Don't avoid childhood
Otherwise you will forget how to love.
Everyone has gathered today
I'm glad to see everyone.
We haven't seen each other for so long,
School friends.
We have already become adults,
They have changed, yes.
But in everyone's soul
School forever!
Today we will remember everything:
How the door was broken down
How the teacher spotted us
With a pack of cigarettes
And how we didn't love
Write tests,
How cheerfully we could
Skip classes.
How could a teacher
It's a stupid argument to have
They hated me at school
Clean up, take revenge.
And then how they cried
We're at graduation
With ribbons and flags,
Regretting one thing
That it's time for us to say goodbye
And it's time to leave
And come back again
We can't come here.
Today for a moment
We will return the past
And in this mood
We'll spend the evening.
School years have long flown by,
They cannot be returned for anything, ever.
We have matured and aged a little,
But, as before, the soul is young.
And, seeing familiar faces again,
Let's remember how easy it was for us then,
How I didn’t want to cram and study.
We thought life would always be like this.
And we are sincerely glad to see this meeting,
In my heart I remain those children.
May this evening be good for everyone,
Let no one be sad today!
There is something to remember for us today,
After all, many years have passed.
And my beloved school
Our bow and our greetings.
Taking the first step from here
They scattered in all directions.
There are no girls and boys -
There are madams and gentlemen.
Dear people -
Everyone has been calling you for a long time.
And I really want to go back
Go to school for at least five minutes.
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Once a year, at the end of January, on social media. networks are seeing a surge in activity. Odnoklassniki, VKontakte, Facebook and Twitter are seething with photo collages from the school album and statuses: “I’m going to the meeting evening. Who's with me?" or "Guys! It's been 20 years! We need to meet and discuss!” We sometimes like to meet the past and return to childhood at least for a short time.
Portal to the past
On the first Saturday of February, the schoolyard is filled not with parents and children, but with former students - respectable men and beautiful ladies. This holiday is called alumni reunion day. And again the school bell rings, and the tights of the desks that have become small are torn, and the aged teacher meets him at the threshold of the class, and the grown-up boys and girls peer into each other’s faces, looking for familiar features.
“Do you remember?”
The meeting of school graduates is always held under the same motto: “Do you remember?” This phrase is heard from all sides. And everyone remembers something that everyone else has already forgotten. Old loves and grudges, victories and defeats, pranks and revelations come up. All bad things are forgiven, all good things are savored. To the question: “How are you? Where are you now? - follows a quick answer and again the refrain: “Do you remember?”
Official part
Like any self-respecting alumni meeting, it also has its own rules. And it all begins with a ceremonial meeting on the threshold of the school, continues with a concert and, after a tour of the school, ends behind closed classroom doors. The concert, which is being prepared by the host party, that is, the school, is held under the same popular motto - “Do you remember?” Considering that those who prepare the concert cannot objectively remember former graduates or know anything about them, the cliches in endless school scenes become understandable. The information is general - “buttons on the chair”, “soap board”, “two again”. We have to admit that the originality and diversity of the prom doesn't spoil. That is why fewer and fewer graduates come to these meetings at school. Most often they gather right away in a restaurant or cafe. To correct this situation, you must not wait for favors from the school, but plan your meeting yourself, take care of both entertainment and communication.
Contest
In order to see school, keep yourself occupied, and not get bored, you need, for example, a couple of weeks before the holiday, to collect in a pile all the photographs from your school years that you have, and give your classmates the task of putting them together into a story with a photo collage. And on the day of the alumni meeting he will be chosen best story and with the help of a printer or simply on disks it can be reproduced by everyone. Agree, there will be something to do between the concert and the cafe. And participation in competitions is a good motivator.
Communication
The most important point Alumni reunions are undeniably about networking. And so that it does not freeze even for a minute, we need an “activist and handsome” who knows everything about everyone and knows how to direct the conversation. Toastmaster of the class, or as they used to say - the cultural sector. If you think about it, there was such a person in every class. He should be given the honor of not letting others get bored. This does not mean that he should prepare competitions and games. He just has to be in communication all evening in order to unite the whole class with his attention.
There is a note of sadness in this holiday. A slight bitterness that we have to say goodbye to childhood again and return to adulthood. But this day gives such an unprecedented charge of energy and optimism that the alumni reunion day is worth visiting, if only for its therapeutic effect.
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