Hundreds of UO community members will come together on Thursday, May 15, for a day of service in the beautiful sunshine on University Day – a longstanding tradition since 1905. All volunteers are welcome between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.; no pre-registration is required.

“The community that a day of service like this can build is unlike any other event,” said Amy Quiring, staff advisor for the student University Day committee. “It is a day that unites a campus, where students get a chance to get to know other students and staff by working together on something tangible for the university; something they get to walk by every day and say, ‘I did that!’”

Volunteers will contribute to the beauty of the university by planting three new trees and hundreds of flowers and shrubs, as well as clean-up projects scattered around campus. Other larger landscaping projects will revamp the Collier House lawn and the Johnson Hall “O” flowerbed.  

About 120 cubic feet of new mulch will be spread; more than 100 cubic feet of that mulch was repurposed from chipped wood debris from the February ice storm.

“Campus Operations and the UO grounds crew work so hard every day to keep our campus grounds beautiful. This is a chance for students to be a part of that and to lend a hand in the many projects that happen around campus,” said Quiring.

University Day provides an opportunity to become part of UO history by participating in an event that has been at the UO for more than 100 years.

“It is something that students will have in common for generations,” said Quiring.

Even though last year’s University Day endured a major downpour all day, the event attracted around 600 volunteers. With Thursday’s weather forecast predicting 80 degrees and sun all day, the University Day committee hopes to see around 1,500 students, staff and alumni volunteers this year.

Each volunteer who contributes at least an hour of service will earn a free University Day T-shirt.

“The flexibility of this event is wonderfully conducive to getting out of the office, classroom, residence hall or apartment and enjoying the sunshine and company of others,” said Quiring. “Every year we hear what a great time our volunteers have, getting a chance to get to know university staff and other students as they create lasting memories, digging in the dirt together!”

-By Sarah MacKenzie, Public Affairs Communications intern