As the SAB Vice President of Homecoming, junior Grace Meyers began planning the annual event in December 2019. Since then, the plans have come a long way, going through 3 revisions since the initial rough draft. As BVU policies have changed throughout the semester, Meyers quickly learned that designing Homecoming 2020 was going be much different than ever before.  

“You have an idea, you see what you want to do, and after months of planning you get told you cannot do it and have to go back to the drawing board,” Meyers said. “It’s kind of been disappointing in that sense, but it’s also been interesting to see how we can build it so students are involved.”  

Although BVU has decided to resume in-person events, all Homecoming festivities will be held on different digital platforms. The virtual activities will be no different than what students have seen with other SAB events, which have had a satisfactory turnout, according to former SAB President McKenzie Lansing.  

“We’ve seen a lot of engagement, not only from students on campus, but also those choosing to learn remote, which is really good,” Lansing said.  

Starting off the fun-filled week of online events is digital caricatures on Monday, October 5th. SAB will have a link on their social media accounts from 5 to 9 p.m. that sends students to a waiting room. From there, they will be brought into a session with the artist. After they’ve been drawn, they will have access to their sketches through Dropbox.  

Also, on Monday, students will be able to purchase Homecoming shirts outside the GSLC during meals. In lieu of handing out sunglasses at the football game, mailboxes will be stuffed with Homecoming masks and schedules.  

On Tuesday, October 6th, a campus-wide favorite is being brought back. From 7 to 8 p.m. students can join a game of bingo through SAB’s Instagram live. Virtual bingo cards will be accessible through a link. Winners must send a direct message with their card number in order to receive prizes. 

Make sure to grab candy and popcorn from the GSLC on Wednesday, October 7th. It will be vital for movie night at 8 p.m. A link to the Netflix Party will be posted on SAB’s social media accounts half an hour before showtime. The lineup includes The Addams Family (1991), Jurassic Park, and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.  

On Thursday, October 8th, put the semesters worth of studying to use at the Nerdology Virtual Trivia Night. A favorite among SAB leaders, this event will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. and can be accessed through a link found on SAB’s social media. The hosts will ask an assortment of questions that individuals can answer for points. At the end of the night, winners will be announced.  

Wrapping up week of festivities is a lip sync battle and Coronation, two key events of Homecoming. This year’s court includes Erin Gerke, McKenzie Lansing, Tania Toj Lopez, Cassidy Miller, Savanna Pohlmann, John Corcoran, Davon Van Houten, Tanner Frost, Reed Kruse and Eric Pacheco. Before the king and queen are crowned, the court members will pair up and go head to head in a lip sync battle. A video of the lip sync battle plus a livestream of Coronation will be available through SAB’s Facebook page from 7 to 8:30 p.m.  

With an abundance of money leftover in Meyers’ Homecoming budget, there will be many prizes for students to win by going to the events. The prizes consist of one car basics pack, multiple goodie-filled totes, one Big Joe beanbag, one 32-inch Roku TV, one Keurig, one generation 8 iPad, one series 6 Apple watch, one Nintendo Switch, and two $99 eShop gift cards.  

“I’ve gone a bit crazy with some of the prizes that are raffle prizes for these events, so I’m hoping I can get more of an attendance from that,” Meyers said.  

To win the prizes, students must prove their attendance by taking a screenshot of the event and submitting it to a Microsoft form, which will be linked on SAB’s social media. Raffle winners will be announced at Coronation and prizes can be picked up in the GSLC on Monday, October 12th. For off-campus students, SAB will send them in the mail.  

Throughout the process of planning such a large event virtually, Meyers’ dedication has not gone unnoticed. Lansing has seen the evolution of Homecoming from the rough draft in December to the recent tweaks and has a positive outlook for the upcoming festivities. 

“Even with reevaluations of the lip sync battle that’s happened this week, she’s done an amazing job with thinking on the spot. I think Homecoming is going to be a great event because of all the hard work she’s put into it. I just want to commend her for that because she deserves all the recognition in the world,” Lansing said.