Albion-isms

Several words and phrases are unique to Albion. Here are some common Albion terms deciphered…

115: The 115 Truck Stop, located at Exit 115 on westbound I-94. A favorite late-night haunt of students in search of classic truck stop food after a long night of studying or other pursuits.

"A" Field: Short for Alumni Field, the site of the football stadium, baseball field, softball field, soccer fields, and outdoor tennis courts.

AAG: Asian Awareness Group. AAG's mission is to "raise appreciation within the campus community for Asian/Asian-American culture."

ACH: Albion College Hillel is a support and educational group for both Jewish and non-Jewish students, faculty and staff on campus.

ACIS: Albion College Information System. This is the way to access your student account information online, from your grades, to your transcripts, to class registration.

ACIS main screen

Albion time: Most classes start at ten after the hour. So, when you say you have a nine o’clock class, it really means you have to leave your room at nine, not that class starts at nine. If someone says they’ll meet you at “six o’clock Albion time,” you know what time to show up.

Ten o'clock Albion Time

Albionian: The College’s yearbook. The Albionian is produced by a crew of students each year and distributed over the summer.

Baldy: Baldwin Hall, where the cafeteria is located.

 
Mix good, wholesome food with good, wholesome conversation and you've got Baldwin

Black squirrels: A unique species of squirrel found throughout the town of Albion. You can often spot black squirrels (some with blond or orange tails) scampering around campus.

 
Squirrels that aren't black?  Never heard of 'em

Bohm: The movie theatre in downtown Albion. It shows first-run movies and has one large main theatre and two smaller theatres upstairs on either side. During the school year, your Albion College ID will grant you free admission every time you go to the Bohm.  

The Bohm Theater on Superior Street

Briton Bash: An event where all the clubs and organizations set up booths on the Quad. You can sign up for new activities, see who is involved in what, and enjoy a big Quad picnic.

Phi Mu's table at the 2002 Briton Bash

BSA: Black Student Alliance, a "social and political organization that strives to provide a support network for African American as well as other students."

Chapel: Wednesday Night Chapel. Chapel is a non-denominational, student-led Christian worship service held every Wednesday night in Wesley Chapel.

Day of Woden: The last day of classes second semester. Dining Services moves to the Quad for a huge picnic, and you can play lots of fun games, such as the Velcro wall, laser tag, human bowling…you can’t miss it!

Drive-in movie: Every fall Union Board sponsors a drive-in movie. For drive-in movies, they bring in a giant screen and speakers and set it up at the Kresge Gym end (west end) of the Quad. Students bring blankets and stretch out on the Quad to watch the evening movie.

Eat Shop: The Eat Shop is a short-order grill on the second floor of the Kellogg Center. The old Eat Shop, located where the Bobbitt Visual Arts Center Annex stands today, was torn down about thirty years ago. Two benches and a table from the original Eat Shop were restored by alumni and are now on the second floor of the Kellogg Center, near the pool table and pinball machines.

 
The Eat Shop

EUPHONICS: A student-led musical organization whose members sing pop and jazz a cappella music.

FCA: Fellowship of Christian Athletes, a "diverse community of believers who strive to implement the will of God in their everyday lives."

Felpausch: The local grocery store, located a short drive from campus on Eaton Street.

Festival of the Forks: The city of Albion's big celebration in the fall. The Festival got its name from the "forks" of the Kalamazoo River's east and south branches, the site where Albion's first residents settled. At the Festival many countries/nationalities are recognized with their own booths featuring food and cultural items from that heritage.

The Io (pronounced "yo"): This is the abbreviation for “Io Triumphe,” a yell written by the Class of 1900. Some phrases were taken from other college yells, some from a Greek play that had been presented on campus during that period, and others were borrowed from the poems of the Roman writer, Horace. It goes like this…

Io Triumphe also is the name of the alumni magazine, as voted on by the alumni in 1936. 

KC: The Kellogg Center, Albion's equivalent to a student union.

KC Box: Your mailbox. Everyone has a mailbox in the KC, which you will keep the whole time you are at Albion—so your mailing address will stay the same all four years.

Kresge Commons: The big room in the basement of Wesley Hall, not to be confused with Kresge Gymnasium.

LAAP: Liberal Arts at Play is a fund of money furnished by the President of Albion College to be used solely on programs and events that contribute to the social life of campus. The funding pool has been used to sponsor trips, dances, and concerts.

3 Doors Down concert, made possible by the LAAP program.

Living Room: Short for the Langbo Living Room, the lounge located on the first floor of the Kellogg Center. The Living Room is a popular spot for meetings, receptions, and just hanging out. You can practice tickling the ivories if you are a piano player, or enjoy a warm fire in the fireplace during the winter.

Loft: Also in the Kellogg Center, on the fourth floor.

The Mae: The newest apartments on campus, officially The Mae Harrison Karro Residential Village. The Mae was erected in 2001 in memory of alumna Mae Harrison Karro of the class of ’31. This popular residence houses 56 lucky upperclassmen.

The Mae

Off-Campus Programs: Albion vernacular for the Center for International Education, the office which coordinates off-campus study opportunities both in the United States and abroad. The Center is located in the Gerstacker International House.

OLA: The Organization for Latino/a Awareness. OLA provides "programs and services that act as a bridge between students, faculty and the Latino/a communities around the world."

Play Fair: That crazy event your first weekend at Albion, where you run around, do silly things, and

Pleiad: The school newspaper. The Pleiad comes out on Friday mornings throughout the academic year. In Greek mythology, the Pleiades are the seven daughters of Atlas, placed in heaven by Zeus. Six of the Pleiades are a bright cluster of stars in the constellation Taurus. In 1882, Albion students named the newspaper after the seventh “Lost Pleiad.”

Quad: Most of Albion’s academic buildings surround a park-like patch of earth nicknamed “the Quad,” short for its official name, the Quadrangle. The Quad is the scene of pick-up Frisbee and football matches, outdoor classes on warm weather days, and graduation each May. If you had attended Albion during the 1880's, you would have headed to the Quad to watch the football team play.

A warm spring afternoon on the Quad

’Relli’s: An easier way to refer to Cascarelli’s, a bar and restaurant downtown.

RHA: Residence Hall Association. RHA strives to "encourage a sense of fellowship among the students of the Albion College residential community, and serves as a forum for the expression of student opinion on residential life, as well as a sponsor to provide activities that promote residential living."

Stack: Short for “Gerstacker Commons,” the Stack is on the second floor of the KC. The third floor overlooks this commons area, a popular place for concerts, comedians, dances, eating, and lectures. The area with the wooden floor and balcony was originally the College's Chapel, before Goodrich Chapel was built.

The "Stack"

SVB:  Student Volunteer Bureau, a "student-led organization that is responsible for supporting and supplying services to existing volunteer programs and assisting in developing new ones."

The Rock:  A rock at the northeast corner of the Quad that gets painted almost daily.  It was a graduation gift of the class of 1899, so just how big is the rock under all that paint?

Students and their little brothers and sisters painting the Rock during Little Sibs Weekend 2003

The "S.E.E." (pronounced "sea"):  Another lounge/study area in the Kellogg Center, located on the second floor opposite the Eat Shop.

Tiers: The six floors of shelves in Stockwell where all the bound periodicals are located. Stockwell originally was designed as a "closed stack" library, meaning that the stacks (tiers) were closed to the public. In those days, you would have asked a librarian for the book you wanted, and he or she would have gone into the tiers and retrieved it for you. If you find yourself getting lost in the tiers one day, remember that they were not built for easy access by the average mortal.

UB: Union Board, a "student volunteer programming council that works to provide social, recreational, educational and entertainment programs for the student body." UB helps bring bands, comedians, and other acts to campus each semester.

WLBN: The student-run radio station that can be heard on Channel 6 on the College’s cable TV system.

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