Author Archives: Leanna Barcelona

An Unusual Sporting Event

  There have been many strange events and occurrences on campus at the University of Illinois, but none quite as odd as the sport of “donkey basketball” that took place in the 1960s. The agronomy club Field and Furrow sponsored an event with the Agriculture Education Club on March 15, 1963 at 8:00 pm that […]

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120 Years of Sororities at Illinois

Around this time of year, 120 years ago, the first sororities (womens fraternities as they were known as at the time) were initiated at the University of Illinois. There is some controversy over which organization was the very first, based on charter approvals and initiation dates. In any event, Pi Beta Phi initiated nine charter […]

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A Homecoming History

With Homecoming week in full swing, it is worthwhile to take a trip back in time and see where the idea of “homecoming” at the University of Illinois came from and what it was like in its first years. Clarence Fiss Williams and W. Elmer Ekblaw (who also wore the hat of botanist on the Crocker […]

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The History of 501 E. Daniel and its Tenants

Here at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, we have the number one graduate program in Library and Information Science. Many people are aware of this, but not as many know that the number one iSchool is housed in a former fraternity house. Prior to the 1990s, 501 East Daniel Street belonged to the Heth […]

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Past to Present: Rush to Recruitment

With the kick off of Panhellenic Formal Recruitment on Friday evening, it is worthwhile to see how the event has evolved over the years at the University of Illinois. A notable difference is the term used to describe the process, the transition from “rush” to “recruitment.” Walking around campus, you are likely to hear both terms used […]

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