Next week is Spirit Week for BYU-Idaho and this semester, the event is celebrating the 25-year anniversary of the decision to make Ricks College a 4-year university. The theme for the week is: “A Steady Upward Course,” named after the 2001 devotional given by former BYU-Idaho President Henry B. Eyring.
Eyring’s devotional states, “Each of us can follow the example we have seen here. We can follow a steady, upward course in a world of change without fear, welcoming the opportunities.”
Sophia Miller is a student employee helping to organize Spirit Week this semester.
“Spirit week is just kind of a chance to celebrate BYU-Idaho, especially in the Fall semester,” Miller said.
The week-long event will be chock-full of activities for students, such as a rodeo, parade and drone show.
McKenna Jones, a Spirit Week director, says there will even be some new activities for students this semester.
“Soapbox racing is the first time ever we’re bringing that to campus. Think of it like a big Pinewood Derby. We’re going to race these carts that people customize down Center Street. So that’s going to be a ton of fun,” Jones said.
Jones says soapbox racing won’t be the only new addition to Spirit Week this semester.
“This is also the first time skydivers [are] coming to campus. They’re going to make a kind of special appearance in our torch lighting ceremony with some BYU-Idaho flags,” Jones said.
Jones says the drone show is a unifying experience.
“Watching that drone show, I don’t know what it does, but it makes me feel like I belong, like, on campus,” Jones said.
Spirit Week activities kick off on Monday at 10 a.m. at the Taylor Quad.
For more information on the week’s events and activities, visit the school’s webpage here.