Homecoming has started with a bang with students participating in voting and activities, helping to revive an old campus tradition at Wichita State University.

“We’ve started off great,” said Ashlee Baysinger, assistant director of student and young alumni relations at the Alumni Association. She said during class breaks about 20-30 people regularly vote for the Homecoming King and Queen.

“With [Homecoming] being absent for 20 years, every year it gets better and better,” Baysinger said.

In 1990, the WSU tradition was stopped due to the school no longer having a football team and with the momentum slowly rising, Homecoming Queen candidate Melissa Ford says it will take effort from the student body to make it what it once was.

“It is still growing and I think the only way to get it bigger is to have students go and attend those [Homecoming] events,” Ford said.

Tuesday night students had the opportunity to go to the Shocker Watch Party at Fox and Hound as WSU faced Southern Illinois.

Also on Tuesday was the judging of the Campus Decorations, with results being announced Thursday night at the Shocking Nearly Naked Run event.

Twelve organizations met the Friday, February 1 deadline.  Those participating in the event included Student Involvement, Barton School of Business, Administration and Finance, President’s Office, Tornado Alley Press, Engineering Student Success Center, Human Resources, WSU Foundation Annual Fund for Excellence, Housing and Residence, Alpha Phi, Gamma Phi Beta, Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma.

The big attraction for the week though is the voting for Homecoming King and Queen. Voting started Monday and with voting continuing through the week, students are able to meet the candidates in the lobby in front of the bookstore.

“Students are able to scan their shocker card and get gold coins to vote for the girls and black coins for the men,” said Baysinger, who counts the votes at the end of every day in a secure location.

“Scanning their shocker card is the easiest way to find out if they are current undergraduates, as they are the only ones who can vote,” Baysinger added.

With this year’s Homecoming candidates coming from various organization such as the Student Government Association, the Office of Multicultural Affairs, Greek life and the College of Fine Arts, many have dubbed them as WSU’s version of the “Breakfast Club.”

One of three sorority women running for Queen, SGA treasurer Tessie Arambula says they may all be sorority girls but they are very different types of sorority girls.

“They are more outgoing and bubbly and while I can be that too, I really do enjoy working,” said Arambula as she works on planning budgets for SGA and other student organizations.

“I would consider it an honor that someone would want to attach my name to Homecoming Queen, and have faith in me enough. So to elect me over other people, that’s a really outstanding statement.”

Those in the running for King are Sigma Alpha Epsilon member Tate Blanton, music performance major Justin Hall, Sigma Phi Epsilon President Tyler Joe, pep band member Tyler Kemp and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. member Devon Lockard.

Running for Queen is Delta Delta Delta member Kailey Westemeir, Delta Gamma Laura Schlapp, captain of WSU’s track & field team Tanya Friesen, Alpha Phi Melissa Ford and Gamma Phi Beta’s Tessie Arambula.

With the candidates’ week planned out for them, they will all attend Thursday night’s Bonfire beginning at 9:15 p.m. in Lot 5 by the soccer fields, followed by the Shocking Nearly Naked Run at 9:45 p.m.

Students running the event can register with donations of a new or gently used article of winter clothing and in return will receive a new T-shirt.

The award ceremony for the run will follow at the Heskett Center and there will be a pancake feed after the ceremony.

The week will culminate with the closing of voting on Friday at noon along with the women’s basketball game themed “Bra’s for a Cause” at 7:05 p.m. and on Saturday with the men’s basketball game at 6:30 p.m. in which coronation will be at halftime.