Students clad in bikinis and board shorts participated in the UA’s first Swimsuit School Day on Thursday.

Event coordinators encouraged students to wear swimsuits to classes and spend their afternoon on the UA Mall. The event featured music, free Eegees and a large inflatable Slip-N-Dip.

Swimsuit School Day was born when marketing sophomore Ross Shanken decided it would be fun to wear swimsuits in celebration of the warm weather.

“”I just kind of thought about it one day,”” Shanken said.

Shanken created a Facebook event based on the concept. Students were so supportive of the idea that he decided to expand the festivities to the Mall.

The event took about three weeks to organize. The music, Eegees and Slip-N-Dip were all donated.

Shanken was supported in the planning by his friends, who agreed Swimsuit School Day would appeal to UA students.

“”We’re in a hot environment, but we’re not close enough to water,”” Hutchinson said. “”We decided to bring the water to us.””

Shanken thought the event would be a good way for students to relieve stress.

“”Finals are coming up. We’re ready for summer,”” Shanken said.

Media arts junior Aelynn Heinrichs heard about the event through Facebook and was eager to participate.

“”It’s summer! I wanted to start swimming and doing stuff,”” Heinrichs said. “”I’ve had my swimsuit on all day. I’ve had shorts and a tank top over it, though.””

Shanken was surprised by the high participation rate. He estimates that about fifty people used the Slip-N-Dip during its first hour of availability.

“”I’ve seen a lot of swimsuits. We had some sunbathers earlier. It was pretty cool,”” Shanken said.

Shanken hopes that Swimsuit School Day will become an annual event.

“”Next year, it’s going to be a lot bigger,”” Shanken said.