By Sondra Rodriguez, Student Reporter
The Homecoming parade will not feature a joint club float for women’s clubs Tri Kappa Gamma and Delta Gamma Phi, as originally planned.
Although production had not begun, financial plans and themes were established for the float.
Ann Varner, adviser for TKG and ACU staff member in student financial services, said ideas were formulated in club meetings, and members seemed excited.
“We were going to join together and split the cost in half,” said Kenna Baskin, president of TKG and senior secondary biology education major from San Antonio.
Along with financial plans, ideas for the float were set in accordance with this year’s theme, “The Best Homecoming on Earth.”
“It was all going to be circus-themed,” Baskin said. “We had a couple people dressing up as animals, clowns and stuff like that. It was going to be really cute.”
She said the decision to cancel the float was based on a lack of preparation time, limited resource availability and issues within
both clubs.
“I don’t think they got near the pledge class they thought they were going to or that they wanted to. It was going to take a pretty big cut out of both budgets,” Varner said.
DGP member Celina Wilson, sophomore family studies major from Conroe, said funds were one of the main components in the decision.
“Because we’re a new club, we don’t have alumni giving us money right now,” Wilson said.
Baskin said the joining of two clubs for one float would be a good example of the social direction clubs are taking.
“They’ve been pushing a lot of club unity through the system right now, and we thought that joining with DGP in their first year would be a good example of that,” Baskin said.
She continued to say that not having a float is a big deal. “It’s unfortunate because this is our second year of not having one, and I think it’s going to impact our alumni negatively – they were upset last year when we didn’t have one,” Varner said.
Although there will be no float this year, Baskin is considering next year’s Homecoming parade.
“Hopefully, we will have enough members or enough resources,” She said. “We’re going to come up with something.”
