Kent State Tuscarawas celebrated its second annual Homecoming Tailgate Party on Wednesday evening in Founders Hall.

The Tuscarawas campus filled with Flash pride as the homecoming king and queen received their crowns, Golden Eagle athletes made introductions, community members and students enjoyed various dishes and a bonfire ignited school spirit. 

Tuscarawas’ 2017 Homecoming court consisted of queen Hannah Yoder and king Taylor Enama, both senior early childhood education majors.

Yoder shared her experience and how the recognition impacted her. 

“It was exciting because my main professor was there, the dean was there, a lot of my friends were there,” Yoder said. “It was exciting to be able to stand up and represent Kent State in front of those influential people.”

Yoder looks to be more of a prominent figure to the future 2018 Homecoming court. 

“I think it will be fun to see who is on the court next year. I will like to speak to them and maybe mentor them for a period of time,” said Yoder.

Enama expressed his excitement for the homecoming weekend.

“It is a great experience,” Enama said. “I’ll be able to look back on this moment forever. It is going to be a great time on Saturday. There is so much diversity up at the main campus and always a lot of things to look forward to.” 

This year’s homecoming also brought feelings of pride and nostalgia.

Tayla Barker, a sophomore early childhood education major, was Tuscarawas’ 2016 Homecoming queen.

“Last year was an awesome experience,” Barker said. “Going up to Kent on homecoming weekend and being in the parade was a lot of fun. I was happy to move on and give it up to Hannah.”

Alongside the homecoming court announcements, the Tuscarawas Campus Golden Eagle athletes received introductions to attendees. 

Chad Conrad, the director of advancement, talked about the importance of the athletics program at Tuscarawas and how it contributes to campus. 

“With the reintroduction of sports at a new level, we thought it was really important to involve our athletics during homecoming in conjunction with the Kent campus,” Conrad said.

Conrad said that Tuscarawas joined the United States Collegiate Association two years ago and that its athletic teams compete at the division three level. Tuscarawas recently introduced division three sports include track, volleyball, men’s and women’s basketball, golf, wrestling, softball and baseball.

Laurie Doneye, the director of Student Services, explained Tuscarawas’ importance in athletics. 

“We are all Kent State, but our particular campus is part of a state law where every county was given the opportunity to form a university branch district,” Donely said. “Tuscarawas County community was the only community that said ‘we want to do this.’ The campus is actually county-owned. We are an unique entity in Ohio.”  

A list of all 2017 Homecoming events can be found on Kent State’s website.

Devon Parker is the north regional campuses and graduate education reporter. Contact him at [email protected]