COME CELEBRATE 75 YEARS OF EXCELLENCE WITH US! HAMMOND -- President Sally Clausen invites everyone to be her guest for Southeastern's 75th anniversary celebration on Thursday, Sept. 14, at 7 p.m. in the University Center. "A very special ceremony has been planned for this Sept. 14, the actual date in 1925 that Hammond Junior College opened," Clausen said. "We envision it to be a cross between an Olympic opening ceremony and a high-paced Super Bowl half-time show on a public university budget!" At the event, a year's free tuition to Southeastern will be given away. (Some restrictions may apply.) The celebration will feature U.S. Rep. David Vitter and Public Broadcasting's Beth Courtney as masters of ceremonies. Throughout the evening there will be entertainment for all age groups. The event will open with an Olympic-style march of alumni at 7 p.m. Those alumni who would like to march will line up at Gate 3 beginning at 6:30 p.m. Alumni can march with their specific college or the special alumni group of their choice. Attire is casual, and any Southeastern apparel -- old or new -- is welcome. Feel free to war medals, ribbons, beanies, Greek t-shirts or jerseys. A march of current faculty, staff and students will follow. An entertaining program incorporating music through the university's eras and a video history of the university will follow the march. A special treat will be a reunion of the singing group "Students of the States." The evening's finale will be an outdoors fireworks display. Special guests will include families of Southeastern's founding fathers and foremer university presidents Clea Parker, J. Larry Crain and G. Warren Smith. Also in the spotlight will be the Golden Grads -- alumni who graduated 50 or more years ago, including one from the second graduating class. The day also will be filled with a salute to the history of the region through the academic conference, "Louisiana's Florida Parishes: Continuity and Change, 1699-2000," sponsored by the Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies (formerly the Center for Regional Studies). The event continues on Friday, Sept. 15. (Call 504-549-2151 for additional information.) "This day will bring back alumni, faculty, students, athletes and community members, and is the highlight of the 75th anniversary celebration," Clausen said. "Come be a part of our celebration of 75 years of excellence in education." Alumni groups planning to participate in the opening march include: Ag Club, Arts & Sciences, Athletics Grads, Classes, College of Business, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Education, former Alumni board members, Golden Grads, Greeks, Lionettes, Livingston Chapter, MBA Chapter, Miss Southeastern & Homecoming Queens, New Orleans Chapter, Orientation Leaders, past Alumni presidents, past SGA presidents, Ponchatoula Chapter, Red Stick Chapter, Golden Lions (retirees), St. Tammany Chapter, Students of the States, Tangi Chapter and Washington Chapter. For more information, call the Alumni Association, 504-549-2150 or 1-800-SLU-ALUM.