Mum-Mania

Students showed their Maverick pride as they handcrafted mums at the UTA Central Library Mum-Mania Tuesday, Nov. 8. The Mum-Mania event is part of the university's annual homecoming celebration events.  

Mums are a way to show pride in the school a person attends during its annual homecoming celebration. Initially, mums were made using real Chrysanthemums, but today they are made with silk flowers. These flowers are fashioned with accessories such as ribbons, charms, beads, stuffed animals and other items. 

Heather Claney, Manager of Community Events, stated it was great to see many students participating in this event and showing pride for UTA. She noted that each mum reflects the student's personality and style. 

"Today, we are all about mum-making for Mum Mania. Every student gets a little baggie with all their little supplies to do their mum. Then we have got little extra goodies that we can add to it as well," Heather said. "I love seeing the team spirit and students that haven't done mums putting mums together." 

Texas Highway Magazine states that homecoming mums started appearing in Texas during the 1930s. However, the first known homecoming mums were worn in Missouri, which hosted the first homecoming football game in 1911. 

At the event, UTA Libraries provided items like ribbons in university colors and other items such as beads so students could individualize their mums and make them specific to themselves. Students had the chance to win some premium items at the event to make their mum stand out even more. Mum experts were on hand to share their knowledge and skills with students. 

Jenny Thomas, a Psychology major, stated she had never gotten the chance to do this type of activity before but always wanted to do it. 

"In high school, everyone wore all these big mums, and I never had a chance to do it," Jenny said. "I thought this would be a fun activity to do with my friends." 

Ilse Mendez, a Nursing major, stated that events like this help to get you connected with new people, have some fun, and be creative at the same time while showing school spirit.