SAC Announces 2023-24 “Throwback” Theme

The Council hopes to rekindle on-campus programming with events based on the new (old) theme.

Niamh Mee, Staff Writer • September 25, 2023

Clad in “SAC Throwback” t-shirts, the SAC team has planned to revive many events that have ceased to exist since the COVID-19 pandemic, in hopes of bringing back the fun of campus event culture. Photo courtesy of Luther SAC.

This year, the Student Activities Committee (SAC) is taking it back to the good old days of on-campus activities. As the SAC team were going through old scrapbooks and yearbooks in the office, they discovered a myriad of events that used to be big parts of Luther campus culture that had fallen by the wayside. In an effort to revive campus events post-COVID, they’re bringing back events that used to be integral parts of the school year that students always looked forward to: Kool-Aid Day, SAC Fest, Casino Night, SAC Spotlight concert series and the much anticipated Flamingo Ball.

A big part of the fall semester’s events so far has been the revived SAC Spotlight concert series. Rather than bring one big concert of one musical genre, the SAC Concerts committee decided to diversify and highlight smaller artists of several different genres. SAC Concerts committee Co-Chair Jannie Gowdy (‘25) explained the motivation behind the decision.

“When we have a concert every year, there are always some people that are a little upset that it’s not an artist that they like,” Gowdy said. “With [the SAC Spotlight concert series] we realized this is a really good opportunity for [Luther students] to hear live music, and more opportunities for people to find music that they like.”

So far, SAC Spotlight has featured Landon Conrath, an indie rocker from Minneapolis, MN; Connor Garvey, a folk singer from Portland, ME; and Lissie, a singer-songwriter who calls Decorah home. Up next for the series is Emmitt James, a hip-hop jazz and jazz rap fusion artist from Milwaukee, WI, performing on November 4.

SAC members show their fun side on a golf cart in Bentdahl Commons; perhaps they’re planning a future event? Photo courtesy of Luther College SAC.

Another part of the SAC Throwback theme is the reintroduction of the Flamingo Ball. Originally started in 1984 as a student dance similar to the current Spring Fling, it was completely disconnected from Homecoming. Though the Flamingo Ball fizzled before the pandemic, the SAC Homecoming team are revamping the event as an alumni-student mixer on the Oneota Terrace, with music from The Sons of Zebedee Doo Dah, drinks and dancing. This year, the Flamingo Ball falls on October 7 at 8:00 p.m. as part of the homecoming weekend festivities. The SAC Homecoming committee, including SAC President and Homecoming committee co-chair Quinn Lohse (‘25), have been hard at work to resurrect the beloved event.

“Everybody and their mother has a story about Flamingo Ball,” Lohse said. “Everybody loves it, any alumni since the 1980s that I’ve talked to, they just go crazy for it, so I’m hoping that we get a lot of crossover of alumni and current students.”

As part of the “Throwback” theme, other areas of SAC will also be bringing back once-popular events. SAC Entertainment will be running Casino Night on September 30 in the Peace Dining Room, at which students are encouraged to attend in their best casino gear. Traditional casino games will be played from 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m., including Blackjack, Roulette, and Slot Machines. To stay updated on all SAC events this year, follow SAC on Instagram, @luthercollegesac, for more details.