I can barely contain my excitement.
After almost a year of waiting (I started counting down the days the day after it occurred last year), my favorite time of the year is upon us.
NYKERK TIME.
Nykerk is a competition between the freshman and sophomore women in three categories: song, play and oration. It was started in 1935 by then Professor John Nykerk as the women’s alternative to The Pull. It has changed over the years, but the basic premise has remained (still a little confused? go here for more information).
What makes Nykerk different for me this year is that I am an oration coach! As a member of the Nykerk committee, I get an inside look at the behind the scenes work of Nykerk. As a freshman or sophomore participant, you aren’t aware of the work that the coaches and executive board do outside of practice to make Nykerk possible. Now that I have some insight into what goes on, I have gained so much more respect for my song and oration coaches (shout out to Alicia, Mara, Cara, and Zoey!).
The kickoff for the Nykerk season, the rally, was last Wednesday. Seeing the sophomores so excited and watching the freshmen get excited was so much fun. Even though Nykerk is a competition, the love and spirit of Nykerk is shared by all who participate!
To introduce the three areas of competition, the coaches perform skits or make videos. Check out this hilarious video, made by the freshman play coaches!
Practices for song, play and oration started this past week. From conversations I’ve had with other coaches, it seems to be going well so far!!
I’m purposefully keeping this post sparse on details, because I will be writing lots more on Nykerk in the coming weeks. I can’t help it; I have to let you all know how ODD-mazing Nykerk is! 😉
Are you in Nykerk? Let me know how it is going for you so far! Tweet at me or leave a comment!
-Rachael