How Are We Celebrating Our UNIVersary?

Free food and giveaways, Bingo and yard games, community conversations, music, and free admission for all to the women’s home basketball game! This is a chance for our Marist community to kick off the new year together and celebrate our Red Fox pride.

Jan. 29 is Spirit Day — show your Marist pride! Students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to wear Marist red throughout the day to mark our 1-year UNIVersary.

Community Block Party  – Official University Anniversary Celebration

When: 3 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. 

Where: McCann Center  

Drop into the McCann Center to enjoy some free food and UNIVersary giveaways, play court and yard games, or try your luck at Bingo to win some prizes (first come, first served). All attendees will be entered into a raffle, and winners will be drawn during President Kevin Weinman’s celebratory remarks (must be present to win). Local radio station K104.7 will be on site providing music throughout the event.

UNIVersary Raffle Prizes

We're marking this milestone with raffle prizes designed to celebrate one-year as a University!

• New York City Broadway Experience
  • $400 toward two Broadway show tickets - any show of your choice
  • $150 Visa gift card so you can enjoy lunch or dinner in the city
  • A perfect excuse for an unforgettable night out.
• Signature Tech Prize
  • Power your next chapter with a brand-new Apple iPad Air—ideal for work, creativity, streaming, and everything in between.
• Plus… there’s more!
  • We’re planning an additional UNIVersary prize to be revealed at the event. Stay tuned for more information.

Community Conversations – Narrative 4 Story Exchange

When: 12:30 - 2 p.m., and 2 - 3:30 p.m.

Where: Student Center, River Rooms

Advance registration required.

Join us for a Narrative 4 story exchange focused on belonging and the cultivation of Marist's Expansive Community. Guided by Narrative 4–trained faculty and staff, this experience is not a discussion or dialogue but a structured practice of story sharing and exchange designed to deepen empathy and understanding across differences. The goal of the Narrative 4 story exchange is to cultivate empathy, connection, and mutual recognition—strengthening our collective capacity to see, hear, and value one another as we continue building an Expansive Community at Marist. The initiative has been featured on The TODAY Show, in The New York Times, and other publications.

Participants will engage in paired and small-group story exchanges in which they listen closely to one another's lived experiences and then reflect those stories back as if they were their own. Through this process of deep listening and perspective-taking, participants are invited to momentarily inhabit another person's point of view, recognizing both common humanity and meaningful difference. Rather than debating ideas or seeking consensus, the story exchange focuses on individual experience: moments of belonging, exclusion, welcome, or visibility within Marist's people, spaces, and practices. Together, these stories illuminate what an inclusive and vibrant community looks like, where it is already flourishing, and where greater care and attention are needed.

Engage in Serious Team Spirit – Women's Basketball Game vs. Canisius University

When: 5 p.m. 

Where: McCann Arena  

We’ll be handing out rally towels to help you cheer on your Red Foxes as they take on the Canisius Golden Griffins. Fans in attendance can sign up for an opportunity to take a half-court shot for $2,500, sponsored by Sims and Associates Podiatry. 

Free admission for all faculty, staff, and students with your Marist ID.  

Watch: Our First Year as Marist University

Highlights from 2025 — the inaugural year of Marist University