After more than 46 years, the Pitt-Greensburg community will welcome back alumni for what some are calling the campus’s inaugural homecoming weekend. Depending on who you ask, though, this may not be the first time the campus has hosted a homecoming event.

Jana Valentine, Director of Campus Activities and a Pitt-Greensburg alumna, said that she remembers the school having homecoming events in the fall when she was a student, but they didn’t stand out as particularly memorable events.

“We did have homecoming a couple of the years that I was a student,” Valentine said. “It rolled into my mind as another event that happened here.”

This year, Valentine and the Student Activities Board hope to change that outlook by re-launching homecoming as something that will grow as a Pitt-Greensburg tradition in the years to come.

“We’re doing things completely different than how I remember it,” Valentine said.

The weekend of events which coincides with Family Weekend will kick off on Friday, Feb. 5, with dinner in Wagner Dining Hall at 7 followed by the comedy of Eric O’Shea at 8 and casino games at 9.

Saturday, Feb. 6, begins with brunch in the dining hall at 9 a.m. and a carnival from 11-3.

Both the men’s and women’s basketball teams will play Penn State Behrend on Saturday and the Homecoming King and Queen will be crowned by Pitt-Greensburg’s president, Sharon Smith, during halftime of the women’s game.

“It’s an important assignment,” Smith said. “It could be difficult if they’re tall, but I’ll manage.”

Pitt-Greensburg’s men’s basketball alumni will be recognized during halftime of the men’s game.

The Alumni Association will host an alumni reception in Lynch Hall at 5 p.m. The events of the weekend will conclude with the Blue and Gold Homecoming Ball for students at the Greensburg Country Club.

Angela Moody, a sophomore member of SAB, said that they’ve been planning homecoming weekend since the fall semester.

“We decided to replace Spring Fling with homecoming,” she said. “Some people who look forward to Spring Fling later in the semester might be disappointed, but we wanted to do something different—not just another dance.”

Smith sees this year’s homecoming as a symbol of Pitt-Greensburg’s growth and maturity.

“Staying where you are feels like falling backwards,” she said. “Here’s our opportunity to move forward. The homecoming is a symbol of that.”

Smith said she wants students to have a personal connection to Pitt-Greensburg not only while they’re students but for the rest of their lives.

At a school like Pitt-Greensburg where about 40 percent of students commute, Smith said that commuters shouldn’t be discouraged from fostering a connection with their schools, either. As an undergraduate at Rutgers, she didn’t allow commuting to stop her from making lifelong friends.

“I personally have loyalty to my undergraduate school where I commuted,” she said. “I want to remind people that this is a relationship that you establish that is a part of who you become. Certainly, there’s an overarching pride of being a part of Pitt, but I want a special pride for being a part of Pitt-Greensburg.”

Valentine also hopes that this year’s homecoming is an important step in developing Pitt-Greensburg’s individuality, separate from the Oakland campus. She said that in past years, the alumni association has offered a bus to take Pitt-Greensburg alumni to the Pitt homecoming football game.

“It’s fun to go to a football game but it’s not Pitt-Greensburg. Actually having something for Pitt-Greensburg that’s all about what we have here will help give us our own identity away from main campus,” Valentine said. “You have alumni that come back and then get on a bus and not spend that much time here. I want people to come and spend time here.”