Ring Dance
The first ever Ring Dance occurred on Saturday, May 15, 1936 and was conceived by a group of seniors who decided that since the Aggie ring is the traditional mark of one whose days on the campus are soon to be over, a dance with the ring as the predominant theme would be appropriate as a final function of the Senior Class. The first Ring Dance had no admission charge and was preceded by the Senior Banquet. It took place with an orchestra in the mess hall and had one plaster of paris Ring replica for the official portraits. Ring Dance occurred from 8pm to 12pm because there was a rule on campus that there couldn't be any dances on Sunday.
In 1941, Ring Dance had two giant Rings for pictures and the traditional "Ring Ceremony". Cadets would tell their dates they had to go through both rings for the "double ring ceremony" but it was really to get another kiss.
1943 and 1945 were the only years to see two separate class Ring Dances. Because of the wars, the school cycle went to a 12-month "express" cycle. One Ring Dance was held in January for one graduating class; the other in May for the next group of graduates.
In 1949, two Ring Dances were also held; one Friday night and one on Saturday night. But rather than being because of the war and "express" graduates. this was due to the number of participants: over 2400 people attended. In order to help get everyone through the rings in an organized manner, the Senior class issued cards saying what night each couple was to go to.
Ring Dance was one room of entertainment and an orchestra until 1978. At that time, another entertainment option was made available: a rock band. The entertainment increased to three rooms in 1989, four rooms in 1993, seven rooms in 1997, and eight rooms in 1998. The variety of entertainment over the years has ranged from orchestra to Tejano to country to piano bar.
Since its creation in 1936, Ring Dance has come to be as much a part of Aggieland as the many older traditions that have existed as long as the school itself. This dance will be for many the last social function of their years at Aggieland.
As each Senior steps into the replica of the Aggie ring, they can turn their ring so that the class year no longer faces them-it faces the world. Seniors are able to reflect over the past years spent in Aggieland and anticipate the future. As each person steps away from the ring, another steps in, continuing the tradition that will go on as long as there is an Aggieland.
Ring dance takes place in the spring each year.
Elephant Walk
Elephant Walk allows the Senior Class to walk around the campus with their friends and classmates while they remember the good times they had at Texas A&M. The Walk occurs prior to the last regularly scheduled football game of the year in order to signify the last time the Senior Class will be of use to the Twelfth Man.
History
The year was 1922. Two Aggie Band Freshmen, or "Fish", from the Class of 1926, wandered out of the football stadium, Kyle Field, after losing their second consecutive game of the year in only the second week of the football season. They began to play a mournful funeral march on a piccolo (played by Oluf G. "Piccolo Red" Carson from Fort Worth, Texas) and a bass horn (played by J. William "Sarge" Dorsey of Harlingen, Texas). The goal of the march was to break the "jinx" that haunted Aggie football at the time. One by one, others joined the march, creating a long, serpent-like column that wandered throughout the campus. For the rest of the season, the fish continued their walk regardless of whether or not the football team lost, or in Aggie lingo, was "outscored when time ran out". After their freshmen year, the Class of 1926 discontinued their marches through campus.
During their senior year, the Class of 1926 decided to give one last Walk to show their spirit for the A&M College of Texas to the rest of the student body. The other three classes on campus had never even seen the ceremony. The Class was led by the same two Aggies who started the original walk, "Sarge" and "Piccolo Red". The Seniors rested their hand on the shoulder of the Aggie in front of them and walked through campus the same as they did when they were freshmen, only this time they were wearing senior boots (a tradition in the Corp of Cadets and part of the senior uniform). They untucked their military shirts and wore their hats backward to indicate that they were "out of uniform". The Aggies cried as they walked through the campus and remembered good times and bad, buddies for life and those that had fallen along the way. Thus, the Class of 1926 "died" much in the same fashion as elephants in the wild do. Thus the solemn tradition of Elephant Walk was born.