Kendall Davies, the Homecoming Committee's publicity and social media chair, is involved in a lot on campus. Davies is a public relations and marketing double major, a member and director of web communications for the Alpha Phi Delta Rho sorority and an account director for Cardinal Communications.
But at this time of the year, almost all of Davies' energy is put into making Homecoming the best it can be.
Davies applied and accepted the chair position in Spring 2016. The committee started having meetings in March and they’ve spent the last seven months planning this entire week.
“The committee and I have put a lot of time and effort into this year's Homecoming because we want everyone to have the best week possible,” Davies said.
All of the promotions and marketing for Homecoming's week of events fall onto Davies' shoulders. She managed and created all of the social media sites, design posters, flyers and event programs.
"You'd be surprised at how many details go into each event. On top of lots of planning, it takes lots of promotion. It's easier to get students and faculty and staff involved because they're already in the area," Davies said. "It takes lots of planning and promotion to get alumni involved because they are located all over the world and this is a big event for them as we welcome them back to their alma mater."
This year's Homecoming is especially important to the committee, because it is the 90th anniversary of faculty, alumni and students coming together to celebrate Ball State’s traditions. This committee had a difficult time choosing a theme for such an important milestone — they ended up with "Blast from the Past."
"Homecoming at Ball State is the best week of the year. Everyone comes together to celebrate Homecoming traditions and by planning these events, we are helping bring campus together, which is a pretty special and rewarding experience," Davies said.
There are 12 students on the Homecoming Steering Committee and three advisers, one of whom is Michelle Johnson, the director for Homecoming and athletic programs. She has been involved with Homecoming for 10 years.
"[Davies] is one of the most reliable publicity and social media chairs I have worked with over the last 10 years," Johnson said. "She is quick, thorough and full of creative ideas. I have appreciated her initiative and willingness to go above and beyond to make Ball State Homecoming 2016 one of the best yet. She has definitely helped promote and boost our events to a new level this year."
Davies said she loves working with all of the people on her committee and is happy to be a part of the Ball State tradition.
"Seeing a big crowd really get into our events and having a good time will be rewarding because everyone on the committee was part of making that experience happen," she said. "For the past three years at Ball State, some of my most memorable moments have been during Homecoming week. This year, I wanted to be part of giving those amazing experiences and memories to people, and that's the biggest motivator behind being part of this week-long event."
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