Hazing doesn't spoil Hey Day for juniors

A long-standing Penn tradition is safe -- for now.

Despite warnings from administrators and student leaders alike, a large crowd gathered on Locust Walk on Friday to usher the Class of 2006 into senior year with a cascade of condiments.

Top administrators had warned that Hey Day could be in jeopardy if students, especially seniors, continued to throw objects at the junior class during its traditional procession across campus. Last year's Hey Day brought a string of injuries and damage.

This year there were three students sent to the hospital -- the same number as last year -- but there were fewer injuries related to object-throwing, Police Chief Mark Dorsey said.

"It was far better than last year," Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush said, but added,"it can get better."

"We just want to ... make sure that people understand that even though it's Hey Day doesn't mean it's a license to do things that are destructive to property or hurt people."

University President Amy Gutmann, who addressed the juniors after their messy march down Locust, said that she was not aware of any plans to end Hey Day in future years.

"What I saw was a well-behaved student body having a good time," she said of her first Hey Day experience.

Senior Class President Matt Klapper said he felt that this year's Hey Day was an improvement from last year.

"The goal here was to save Hey Day because in the direction it was moving, there was a threat that it wouldn't happen," Klapper said. "There was a threat of it getting worse."

The College senior sent an e-mail out to his classmates last week asking them to reconsider before throwing dangerous objects, such as the bags of urine students used last year.

"It's a move in the right direction," he said of Friday's festivities. "It wasn't dangerous. It was just disgusting."

Several new precautions were implemented to prevent the destruction and damage that followed last year's Hey Day.

The Penn Band, which traditionally leads the procession, only marched part of the way, and extra security was brought in to monitor the event.

Also for the first time, Hey Day marshals wearing bright yellow T-shirts could be seen patrolling Locust Walk. Serving were of volunteers from all parts of the Penn community, including faculty, staff and administrators.

"I think the Hey Day marshals made a big difference because it leveled the playing field," Rush said. "It was just about the police enforcing rules. ... They don't want to be always in the position where they're perceived to be taking away people's fun, but at the same time, we have a job to do."

Felicity Paxton, a Stouffer College House faculty fellow, acted as a Hey Day marshal on Friday. It was her first Hey Day since the condiment tradition began about four years ago.

"I've seen it both ways now. ... I preferred it without all this," Paxton said, pointing in particular to "the addition of sauce and flour and shaving cream."

However, she noted that she walked away nearly unscathed.

"I expected to get pelted, and I'm very pleased that I'm relatively clean," Paxton said.

Others were not so lucky.

"I'm covered in stuff. Bad stuff," Wharton junior Lloyd Thomas said. "I feel like I have a lot of flour on me, I have some maple syrup in my hair, I have chocolate and strawberry syrup on my face and I really want to take a shower."

Despite the mess, Thomas described the atmosphere as being "euphoric."

Other juniors shared in Thomas' excitement, but for some the day was also bittersweet.

"I can't believe I've made it this far," College junior Chris Catania said. "Three years have passed me by. ... I'm so excited, but I don't want to leave. This is the beginning of the end."

Klapper also expressed a combination of enthusiasm and apprehension.

"Hey Day is one of the best traditions that we have at this school, and I'd hate to see it ruined by a few minutes of people throwing things."

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