As Eastern Michigan University prepares for Homecoming Week Oct. 15-19, the EMU Black Alumni Association and Black Homecoming Committee are preparing for the university’s 2024 Black Homecoming Week.
2024 Black Homecoming Week consists of four events this year, including Trap Karaoke, the 2024 Black Homecoming Cookout and Alumni Mixer, the 2024 Yard Show, and the Divine Nine Game Day Kickoff March.
Due to the university fall break conflicting with Homecoming Week, this year’s Black Homecoming cookout will be combined with the Black Alumni Mixer.
“It is basically gonna be like an EMU Black family reunion,” EMU success coach, instructor, alumni, and co-chair of the Black homecoming committee, Kimberly Jones, said.
The goal of the Black Alumni Mixer is to show Black students that people that look like them occupy the space in the form of faculty, administrators, and alumni, Jones said.
“For us to not lose that event due to the break, we combined it with the cookout this year,” Jones said.
The cookout will consist of Black student organizations tables, food trucks, games, and music, according to the university’s homecoming website.
Black homecoming has been around for a significant amount of time, Jones said. She has been involved with the Black homecoming commitee periodically since 2015.
“This an opportunity for us to express ourselves and celebrate our university in ways that we enjoy,” Jones said.
Black students make up the second largest demographic of the student body at EMU.
“On a daily basis, it can still feel very isolating being at a predominantly white institution,” Jones said. “Sometimes the programming just doesn’t fit our culture.”
The music, connections, and experiences of these events are representative of the Black culture on campus that students wouldn’t experience at typical homecoming events, Jones said.
“We have to continuously be aware of the masking that we do, the dual identity that many of us possess,” Jones said. “But in these moments, we can be our authentic selves.”
Jones has seen a large number of the Black student population in attendance at these events over the years.
“What attracts people to these events is that these are spaces where you can be your true, authentic self,” she said. “It’s why we get the numbers that we do.”
Black homecoming has created a space for Black students to network with alumni and gain knowledge about scholarships, internships, and success after college, Jones said.
Jones hopes that Black homecoming will continue to receive the necessary funding to continue its impact in the future, she said.
More information about the 2024 Black homecoming events at EMU can be found on the university’s homecoming Website.
“These events may not always mirror what the university looks like, but it mirrors what our experience at the university looks like,” Jones said.
