A “Pioneer Strong” Celebration, Football Game and Tailgating are Among the Festivities for Homecoming on October 10 and 11, 2015

--Alumni are invited to bring friends, fire up the grills, and join fellow alumni on October 10 and 11

A “Pioneer Strong” celebration, football game, and tailgating event are among the festivities as the William Paterson University Alumni Association celebrates Homecoming 2015 by welcoming alumni back to the campus on Saturday, October 10 and Sunday, October 11.

The festivities begin on Saturday, October 10 with a “Pioneer Power” celebration from 11  a.m. to 3 p.m. in Lot 5 on campus. Alumni and their families are invited to visit the Pioneer Midway for game booths, a photo booth, a rock wall, ziplining, cheesesteaks, funnel cakes, prizes, and more. Admission is free.

Alumni are invited to bring friends, fire up the grills, and join fellow alumni for a tailgating event in conjunction with the football game. Tailgating will be held from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Lot 5.   

The Pioneer Football Team squares off against Frostburg State University at 1 p.m. in Wightman Stadium. Admission is $8; $5 for alumni with a membership card, seniors, children under 12, visiting school’s students with I.D., and William Paterson faculty and staff; and free for William Paterson students with I.D.

Other Saturday activities include a brunch reception for former student leaders from 11 a.m. to noon and a men’s soccer match against Kean University at 6 p.m. in Pioneer Soccer Park. The evening will also feature cabaret singer/songwriter Ann Hampton Calloway in an Onstage Café at Shea performance in Shea Center; tickets range from $55 for a 6:30 p.m. dinner and the show, to $30 for the show only, which begins at 8 p.m. A comedy show will be held at 8 p.m. in the Pioneer Café.

To cap the day, the University’s Department of Physics will host a free lecture and stargazing event, “Searching for Life Out There in the Universe,” at 7:30 p.m. in Science East 2064.  Jason Kendall, an adjunct professor of astronomy, will be the speaker. Weather permitting, his talk will be followed by the opportunity to join the University’s Astronomy Club to view the heavens through the University’s telescopes on Wightman Field.

Homecoming 2015 continues on Sunday, October 11 with the Athletic Hall of Fame Induction ceremony and brunch at 11:30 a.m. in the University Commons Ballroom.  Other events include a “Dare to Pair: A Mash-Up Event” from 2 to 4 p.m. in the University Galleries.

Homecoming 2015 is underwritten, in part, by Liberty Mutual. For additional information about Homecoming events, call the University’s Alumni Association at 973-720-2175 or visit the website at wpunj.edu/homecoming.