2015 Homecoming Summary

Homecoming 2015 Summary

Homecoming Overview: Homecoming Week at Florida State University is a weeklong series of events planned for the student body and alumni to celebrate their connection to the institution. Homecoming is an annual tradition hosted by Florida State University during the fall semester to welcome alumni back to campus, as well as foster a sense of school spirit among students. The event offers a variety of programs that attracts a diverse crowd of participants. The week takes place during the fall semester each year. Homecoming 2015 took place from Sunday, November 8 through Saturday, November 14 under the theme, “Garnet & Golden Age.�

The Student Government Association (SGA) at Florida State University Homecoming Executive Council sponsors all Homecoming events in coordination with the Student Activities Center, the Alumni Association, the Student Alumni Association and the entire university community.

Homecoming Planning Committee and Campus and Community Partners: The Student Activities Center directly advises the Homecoming Executive Council, which coordinates these events. The Homecoming Executive Council and Committee, a committee consisting of 25 students and three advisors, oversee the planning of several Homecoming events during the week. The student committee includes an overall director and assistant director, the director and assistant director of Pow Wow, the director and assistant director of Parade and Chief and Princess, and a coordinator for each event, marketing, student groups, and more. The Student Body President appoints the Overall Homecoming Director and Assistant Director. Additional committee members are selected in the spring semester by a committee comprised of the Overall Director and Assistant Director, SGA appointees, and Homecoming advisor(s).

The schedule of events for Homecoming 2015 was planned by the Homecoming Executive Council and added to the Overall Official Homecoming Calendar by the All-University Homecoming Committee. Selection of events and scheduling took into account assessment information and feedback from the 2014 Executive Council.

The following are some of the campus and community partners for the week:

Event List:

• • • • • • • •

• • • • • •

Chief & Princess Elections Faculty and Staff Reception FSU vs. NC State Football Game Homecoming Parade Jimbo’s True Seminole Tailgate Karaoke 4 a Cure Pow Wow Renegade Recess

Seminole Festival Skit Night Spear-It Night Student Veteran Film Festival Torch Pursuit Warchant Concert ft. Zac Brown Band

Event Attendance: Event Warchant Concert Spear-It Night Skit Night Torch Pursuit Faculty and Staff Reception Seminole Festival

2007 3,500 1,200 1,300 N/A

2008 4,000 1,200 1,000 N/A

2009 3,500 1,200 1,200 N/A

2010 9,000 1,000 1,000 N/A

2011 2,500 1,000 1,100 N/A

2012 12,000 950 1,500 100

2013 6,640 950 1,050 125

2014 2,489 654 1,260 N/A

6,624 530 1,100

N/A

N/A

250

200

50

150

106

120

85

N/A

N/A

2,000

2,500

2,500

3,000

3,000

3,000

500

Seminole Showdown

N/A

N/A

N/A

100

200

170

145

145

N/A

369

350

Karaoke 4 A Cure Renegade Recess Pow Wow Jimbo's True Seminole Tailgate

130

800 5,667

185 4,387

150 4,789

200 2,802

200 5,385

250 6,500

200 8539

200 6,347

225 8,932

N/A

N/A

200

350

750

424

330

453

423

Survey Results: Of those 18,899 students who attended Homecoming 2015, 1,183 students (6.25%) completed the surveys.

Highlights of findings: •

2015

A total of 1,366 surveys were started, with 1,183 completed, (87%) completion rate o Ethnicity Breakdown: Caucasian/ White (73%), Hispanic/Latino (13%), African American/Black (6%), Mixed (3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (3%), Other (1%) o Gender Breakdown: Male (17%), Female (82%), Other (1%) o Classification Breakdown: Freshman (25%), Sophomore (25%), Junior (21%), Senior (23%), Graduate Student (7%), Transfer (3%), Other (2%)

o Most respondents resided off-campus (60%) o Most participants chose to participate in the Homecoming events in order to enjoy the events (90%) or support school spirit events (65%) o Most respondents attended Homecoming with their friends or roommates (90%) •

The majority of survey respondents agreed with the following statements: o Homecoming appeals to FSU’s diverse student body (93%) o Homecoming events provide an opportunity to meet new people & socialize (28%) o The overall theme for FSU Homecoming 2014: “Garnet & Golden Age” was appropriate for campus (97%) o FSU provided a variety of events for Homecoming (96%) o Individual themes for FSU Homecoming 2015 activities were creative (94%) o Amount of activities offered different opportunities to participate (93%)

•

The respondents that did not agree Homecoming appealed to FSU’s diverse student body (7%) were given an opportunity to comment as to why they felt that way. Here are the top responses: o Events/the week is centered around Greek life, and small student organizations and individual students struggle to participate o Diverse Artist/entertainer that represent a certain group and appeal to a select group of students, specifically addressed artist selection flip-flopping between a rap artist versus country artists o Reach out to other students about the events that normally don’t participate

•

The top three ways respondents heard about Homecoming events: o Friends/Word of Mouth (68%) o Facebook (64%) o E-mail (58%)

•

Billboards o The majority of respondents indicated that they saw billboards for Homecoming, Warchant or Pow Wow, 68%.

•

Participants offered a number of reasons as to why they may not have participated in Homecoming. The top three responses were: o They were too busy or had other things to do, like work, school work, or were out of town (56%) o They did not find the entertainers interesting or were general not interested (16%) o They were not sure of the schedule of events and did not have enough information regarding events (8%)

The most popular events were the Pow Wow (93%), Homecoming game (85%), and the Homecoming Parade (74%)

Demographics and Marketing Demographic Information:

Gender

Residence

0% 20%

4%

No answer

No Answer

13%

On-Campus

Male

14%

Female

31%

52%

Off-Campus

66%

Classification 1% 6%

3%

Other

Sorority/Fraternity House

No Answer

No Answer

1%

Sophomore

13%

Junior

19%

Ethnicity

Freshman

21%

11%

3%

0% 5% 3%

Senior Graduate Transfer

17% 20%

14%

African American/Black American Indian/Native Alaskan Asian/Pacific Islander Caucasian/White Hispanic/Latino

63%

Multiracial

Other Other

Marketing Information:

How did you0%hear about Homecoming 2015?

4%

3% 1%

9% 3% 2% 4%

8% 5% 2%

12%

7% 0% 7%

13%

0%

14%

6% 1%

Banner Billboard Dining Hall Ad Door Hanger E-mail Facebook Radio ad or promotion Flyers/Posters in Residence Hall Friend/ Word-of Mouth Newspaper Organization Rep TV ad Promotional items/ t-shirt Resident Assistant Twitter Homecoming Website Yard Signs Market Wednesday SLC Theater Slide Other

Why did you attend FSU Homecoming Events?

1%

Enjoy the events Hungry/ free food

20%

28%

Learn about campus activities Meet new people/socialize Nothing else to do

12%

Support friends

8% 15%

4% 3%

9%

Member of an organization that is participating in Homecoming events Support school spirit events Other

Do you think Homecoming appeals to FSU's diverse student body?

6%

19%

75%

Did you see any of the Homecoming, Warchant, or Pow Wow billboards?

23%

29%

No Answer

No Answer

Yes

Yes

No

No

48%

Recommendations for Next Year: •

•

•

Change in committee meeting structure –First, the committee as a whole would benefit from meeting altogether in a more consistent fashion – biweekly if not weekly. Directors should also be having weekly 1:1 meetings with a designated advisor. Increasing the number of times the entire group meets together will help solve some of the overall communication issues on the council this year.

More hands-on student training –Many students expressed frustration with not being informed on office procedures including Event Permits, Performer Information Sheets, and Purchasing forms. Including a day of training in the Spring semester will set students up for success in these areas.

Logistically, a number of improvements can be made to help next year run more smoothly.

Completing event permits in the Spring once the calendar is set, purposefully creating rain plans for each event, and organizing all receipts and purchase orders as they are being created will help Homecoming 2016 remain organized.

Conclusion Florida State University Homecoming is a weeklong event of activities and programs concluding with a home football game. Several departments across campus participate in the planning, executing and hosting of Homecoming events. The Student Activities Center works directly with the student Homecoming Committee in collaboration with the Student Government Association and the Florida State Alumni Association to execute a successful week of programming. We look forward to working with the university community to continue to improve upon Homecoming by engaging more students, staff and alumni.