The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s 2014 spring commencement will be held at Camp Randall Stadium for the first time in more than two decades Saturday, but no students will walk across the stage to receive their diplomas.
Instead, they will get up, stand up and most will likely throw their hands up along with their caps as House of Pain’s “Jump Around” blares through the stadium speakers one last time for the soon-to-be Badger alumni.
The decision to play “Jump Around,” a quintessential UW-Madison tradition, at commencement came as a result of a recommendation from the senior class officers earlier this semester, University Communications spokesperson John Lucas said.
The song was initially intended to be a surprise for the graduates, a plan that was revealed a week early following the launch of a petition with the same goal, Lucas said.
UW-Madison senior Francesca Moroni started the petition to garner support for incorporating “Jump Around” into the ceremony May 7 after an unsuccessful effort to contact the senior class officers.
Within 24 hours, more than 1,000 people had signed, a turnout Moroni said she did not anticipate. Those in support of the petition ranged from students and parents to friends and relatives outside of Wisconsin.
“I feel really bad for kind of ruining the surprise, I guess, but at least now everyone will wear comfortable shoes,” Maroni said.
Senior Class Treasurer Sarah Neibart, who will be sitting on the stage during the ceremony, said she is excited to see the “sea of caps and gowns jumping” as her fellow Badgers partake in the beloved tradition.
“When we decided that we wanted to have commencement at Camp Randall, we said, you know, what is being at Camp Randall without ‘Jump Around’?” Neibart said.
Moroni said she looks forward to participating in what she hopes will become a new commencement tradition.
“I think that ‘Jump Around’ is a great way to just kind of come together one last time,” she said. “It’s just an unbelievable feeling of belonging.”
The commencement ceremony, which is expected to take 75 minutes, will feature former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman as the keynote speaker.
