From Mr. and Ms. Georgia Tech to Ramblin' Royalty

Homecoming week is upon us, and there are many long-standing traditions you will see happening around campus, including Student Award Winners. Though many traditions this year will happen as they normally do, this year, there is a new change to the name of the student awards. What was once called Mr. & Ms. GT is now called Ramblin’ Royalty. The recent name change adopts an inclusive approach to the scholarship program, celebrating students who exemplify the Georgia Tech motto, “Progress and Service,” during their time at Georgia Tech. 

Students and staff worked together a little over a year ago to improve the process by removing gender and socioeconomic barriers for students wanting to apply to be a part of the student awards scholarship program. There were several steps taken to make this change including surveys, research, and meetings with stakeholders. Members of the Student Center Programs Council (SCPC) researched what other colleges practiced during their homecoming week, their homecoming award titles, and historical perspective for existing names and titles. SCPC also administered a survey to students in spring 2022 to provide an opportunity to discuss their thoughts about the name change of the scholarship program and to give context behind the change. The majority of those who took the survey responded positively to the change and believed it supported the Institute’s strategic plan and values. Considering this, the decision was made to move forwardwith changing the name from Mr. & Ms. GT to Ramblin’ Royalty.  

Several meetings with campus stakeholders in various departments and student groups were held over the past year togain a better understanding of the change and to ensure the process was as inclusive as possible. This is not the first time the homecoming scholarship program has changed its name. It began in the 1950s as a pageant for only women, some who were not even Georgia Tech students, it was not until the 1970s when an actual GT student was crowned the title of Miss Georgia Tech. In the 1980s, they allowed men to be a part of the program and changed the homecoming awards to Mr. & Ms. GT. In 2022, students who do not identify with a Mr. or Ms. title can feel like they are included and can participate in this program. 

This year’s finalists were announced on Friday, September 30 at the Homecoming Gala. Finalists include Jacob Lewis, Emmett Halloran, Sean Alexander, Ainsley Ronco, Doug Dillman, Sofia Vainikos, Hrydesh Patel, and Elizabeth Wright. Finalists will take the field at Bobby Dodd stadium on Saturday, October 8 during halftime of the homecoming game when this year’s Ramblin’ Royalty winners will be announced. For more information, visit studentcenter.gatech.edu or follow @gthomecoming on Instagram.