Many students will be showing their parents around the UA this weekend, taking them to their favorite places and giving them a glimpse into their home away from home.
On the other side of the coin, students may also be peering into the UA’s past as their parents and family who are proud alumni return to their old stomping grounds and share their legacies.
“The UA always feels like home to me,” said Nancy Acosta, a proud alumna of the UA who is excited to show her school spirit.
The UA is more than just a place to learn—It is a university filled with diversity and school spirt, said UA alumna Jill Prickett.
Prickett said she is thankful for the memories she made along with the friendships she developed during her four years as a student here.
“I am still friends with a handful of the people that I was friends with in college, presently,” she said. “I also met my husband at the university. He was a football player, so I always attended all of the games.”
Prickett said she’s proud to see her daughter Emily, a physiology sophomore, following in her footsteps as the UA continues to expand and grow.
Acosta said the athletics at the UA are no joke and the programs have grown even bigger over the years. With basketball, soccer, football and the Zona Zoo, she said the UA never fails to lose its school spirit.
“It means everything to me that my daughter followed my legacy,” Acosta said. “I am proud that myself and my daughter are both Wildcats, and I can’t wait to see where the lessons my daughter has learned at the UA end up taking her in the future.”
Many alumni of the UA say that their time spent at the university was the best and most rewarding years of their lives.
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Joey Finkle, a proud alumna of the UA who graduated in 1980, admitted that her time at the UA was the best and that she wouldn’t trade any of her college memories for the world.
“I was 14 years old when I first visited the UA while on a road trip with my sister,” Finkle said. “I remember looking out my windshield and saying to her ‘I don’t know about you, but I’m going here.’ ”
Finkle said the university curriculum, the beauty of the campus itself, the warm weather and the other diverse and unique aspects of the UA make the university so special. There is truly no better place to go to school, Finkle said.
Finkle completed her undergraduate degree in child development and family relations in 1980 and earned her graduate degree in exercise physiology in 1983.
“I am proud to see my daughter follow in my footsteps by attending the UA, and I am proud to be an alum,” Finkle said.
Finkle said that the UA infuses ideas of diversity and equality into all of its departments and never fails to teach its students lessons that they’ll remember forever.
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Holly Ochieng, a nursing junior, said the UA is an amazing place to go to school and that she’s glad she’s part of the Wildcat family.
“My mom and my brothers went to the UA, and I am so happy to be able to follow in their footsteps,” Ochieng said. “Family Weekend is so great because we all get to bond over the university and share more amazing memories together.”
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