At the end of each academic year, the Office of Student Involvement (OSI) works alongside the Senior Week Committee to host an array of events for graduating seniors as commencement approaches. As the end of the spring 2024 semester approaches, so does the start of the Senior Week festivities.
The first event detailed on the Rose Hill Senior Week webpage is the Senior Leadership Award ceremony held in the Great Hall of McShane Campus Center on May 13 at 6 p.m. However, the actual Kickoff Event, marking the beginning of the festivities, is under the bleachers on May 14 from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. The Kickoff Event calls seniors to arrive in their Fordham gear for a night of dancing, food and, for students 21 and older, drinks. Tickets are $15 and each drink ticket, with a maximum of four, is $5.
For a seventh year, the Senior Ball will be held at Cipriani 42nd Street. The landmark location is across the street from Grand Central Terminal and allows for an elegant night of dancing for the seniors. Tickets for the event cost $150 if purchased prior to 11:59 p.m. on April 28. There was also a split pay option where the senior could deposit half the ticket cost and pay the other half by May 13. Ticket prices have now increased to $175. The ticket covers entry, a full Cipriani buffet and an open bar (with valid ID).
Next, the graduating class can join President Tania Tetlow and the Senior Week Committee for the Class of 2024 photo and the “Always a Ram” celebration on Keating Steps on May 16 from 5-7 p.m. Seniors are asked to wear maroon for the picture. The tickets are free and can be exchanged for a Fordham memento while supplies last.
Finally, on the night before their commencement ceremony, the Parent Appreciation Dinner Dance will be held for seniors to thank those in their lives who supported them throughout their time at Fordham. The dinner will be held May 17 at 7:15 p.m. on Martyrs’ Lawn. There will be a buffet, live band, dancing and an open bar for those of legal drinking age. The tickets are $75 per person with a limit of six tickets for each graduating senior, including their own.
Tickets for any of these events are available for seniors to purchase through University Tickets. Limited tickets are available for each event; all Senior Week events typically sell out.
To help with the planning and organization of each year’s Senior Week, there is a group of students from the graduating class who work as the Senior Week Committee. Leading this committee are co-chairs Matthew Reese, GSB ’24, and Maribelle Gordon, FCRH ’25.
When asked what she was most looking forward to about Senior Week, Gordon replied, “I think we’re all just really excited to see all the committee’s hard work from throughout the year coming together in such an amazing way. We have put on some great events throughout the year, but this final week of programming is the ultimate celebration of the seniors, and it is amazing to see those events come to life.”
Gordon also commented on how the Fordham Class of 2024 is made up of many students who were 2020 high school seniors and unfortunately missed out on numerous high school graduation activities due to COVID-19. “We hope that we can make up for that and give them a really special finale to their college career,” Gordon stated.
The Senior Week Committee is also selling Fordham Class of 2024 sweatshirts online. The sweatshirts are available in both gray and maroon and are sold for $40 each.
Underclassmen looking to be involved in Senior Week can sign up next fall to be volunteers. Class of 2025 students wishing to join the Senior Week Committee for their graduating class can apply online by 11:59 p.m. May 1.
