Student governed? What's the big deal?
Well, geez! It's only the biggest deal! UVa prides itself on the importance student self-governance; from Student Council to Honor, from a cappella groups to debate clubs, part of the Virginia experience is the chance to get involved and have a real impact on the University community. We think that being student governed is the only way to go for University organizations, otherwise you're just following the teacher like you did in high school. And don't mistake "student leadership" for student governance! Having section leaders "lead" other students by following the instructions of a professional director is not student governance. We're not pointing fingers, though.
Where have you guys been?
Aye! There's the rub. When the University hired a professional band director to put together a "marching" band, they banned student governed bands (us) from performing at University athletic events. It was a bummer. And not just for us! The Pep Band traditionally performed at Soccer, Lacrosse, and occasionally Swimming, Field Hockey, etc, in addition to Football and Basketball. These "non-revenue" sports currently have no band supporting them, yet we're still not allowed in, despite efforts by the student council. Unfortunately, this is not the first time those rascals at the athletics department have tried to get rid of us; read more about our history here.
So, what do you do now?
Unwilling to give up 30 years of scrambling, and many more years of UVa student governance, the Pep Band continues to rabble-rouse about C-ville. You'll find us at many Ice Hockey and Rugby games (club teams outside the influence of the Athletic Department), C-ville community events like the United Way day of caring or the 10-miler, and plenty of other random places at the U, like move-in day scramble and holiday caroling. Even without "official" athletics events, we keep very busy playing all sorts of events, from birthdays to Ivy League Football games to Major League Baseball games.
Why do you guys make fun of people? Isn't that mean?
Many of you have heard of our legendary shenanigans of the past, from "Like Sherman through Georgia" at the Peach Bowl, to "Elvis is really dead" in Nashville, and even the most recent "Beverly Hillbillies" show against West Virginia. Unfortunately, some of our gags aren't taken in the well-natured light they were intended, and the targets of our jokes end up saying "How dare they?!" and calling their local politicians. We can only say a joke is a joke; we wouldn't deal them out if we didn't want to be made fun of in return. Heck, we even get you started; we make more fun of ourselves and our school than we do of you and your school. Eg: We're so bad, even our own school won't let us play! The unofficial Pep Band motto is "Futuaris non irresus ridebis", which translates roughly as "If they can't take a joke, perhaps they would instead enjoy intimate personal relations."
Man, you guys got a bum rap. How can I help?
Well, words of encouragement are always welcome; send them to our student director. To help in more tangible ways, head over to www.orangevest.org, our Alumni support organization and a great bunch of folks. Also, tell the President of UVa and the Director of the AD that there is still a place at UVa for a student run band. That's all we can ask. Oh, except for money. Send us lots of money.
(by Elmo, 2005)
