One group with one mission: to raise school spirit.
The Cannon Ballers, an offshoot of the Student Government Association’s Billiken Tradition and Pride Initiative, hopes to magnify the popularity of major campus events so they become “Billiken traditions.”
“It’s not creating something new,” said SGA President Sam Howard. “It’s highlighting what’s already there.”
Howard believes that Saint Louis University is going through something of an identity crisis. Even with the numerous student organizations on campus, something is still lacking when it comes to school pride.
“What we’re missing is more consistent shared experiences,” she said.
The Cannon Ballers plan to take the top six campus activities and promote them through vast word-of-mouth advertising by students themselves.
“We were looking for a way to get that [school spirit] happening without flyers,” said Samantha Morr, SGA academic vice president.
“That stuff that you use to advertise is great but isn’t necessarily the most effective.”
The process of choosing the members of Cannon Ballers began under a shroud of secrecy, leading some members of the SLU population to call the group a secret society.
Initially, members were chosen because they were considered to be influential on campus.
Then those members nominated others whom they thought would add to the group, thus creating a rolling nomination process.
Some worried that nomination process might exclude students who are willing to volunteer but may not know the right people in order to be nominated.
Kate Sliney, SGA senator and Cannon Baller, said she worries about the implications of an non-publicized recruitment process and hopes that any misconceptions by the community did not harm the overall objective of the campaign.
“It can’t be a secret,” she said.
“It comes from a good place and it shouldn’t be understood as people being neglected. Negative perceptions take away from the goal.”
Howard noted that the crecy was an attempt to prevent cynicism on the part of students who may think that the Cannon Ballers are simply promoting “a club.”
“Ideally everyone is a Canon Baller,” she said.
As more students expressed interest, the nomination process was revised. Now, all interested students can get involved with the Billiken Tradition and Pride Initiative by sending their name and phone number to [email protected].
This is not the first time that a student-led anti-apathy campaign has been formed. In 2005, SGA created an ad hoc committee to run the “Billiken Pride Initiative,” introduced by then-President Cari Johns.
Their plan called for chartered student organizations to put memorabilia on display in the Busch Student Center “to encourage a pride in past and present issues.”
The Cannon Ballers plan something a little flashier to fill students with school spirit.
On Friday night, in preparation for the men’s basketball game against Boston College on Saturday, a giant Billiken spotlight will be shone against the east side of Griesedieck Tower and the tower of the Busch Student Center will be adorned with blue lights.
Howard hopes that this temporary attraction will become a permanent fixture at the university, to be brought out to promote every major university “tradition.”
“The Billiken Signal calls you to be a Billiken,” she said. “Just like the Bat Signal calls you to be a hero.”
The name “Cannon Ballers” recalls the weapon that injured the young St. Ignatius of Loyola at the Battle of Pamplona.
During his convalescence, Ignatius studied the lives of the saints and underwent a spiritual transformation that would lead to the foundation of the Society of Jesus.
Howard said that she wants this incident in the history of the Jesuits to inspire SLU students to take action.
