"Two-Step"

As Boyer noted in his book, it is important to celebrate and foster traditions. As a profession, traditions and celebrations are an integral component of our daily work on our college campuses. What would our lives be like without the traditions of homecoming, commencement and convocation, not to mention our annual conferences for both students and professionals? These memorable experiences truly enhance our lives both personally and professionally.

As an association, SEAHO has many long-standing traditions that we celebrate annually. We have our awards and other means of recognition, our opportunities for involvement like the annual case study competition, and our opportunities of social interactions. We also have another tradition that the many new professionals who attended the closing luncheon might have found somewhat strange. At the closing luncheon, participants witnessed the passing, from the outgoing president to the incoming president, of our traditional horse blanket. Since that experience happened without explanation, I thought I would explain the history of that exchange.

In 1964 during the annual ACUHO-I Conference at the University of Michigan , a group of housing directors from the southeast met to discuss the idea of forming a regional association. In 1965 SEAHO was created as an association to sponsor an annual conference to facilitate an exchange of ideas and dialogue among professional colleagues in housing. Don Moore of Emory University volunteered to host the first annual meeting at Emory University . At that meeting, Malcolm Gray, Director of Housing at Mississippi State University , proposed the name SEAHO be adopted. The association continued to meet for the next ten years as an unstructured body with a housing director typically volunteering to host the annual meeting.

With the addition of exhibitors and increased conference participation, SEAHO began to accumulate a conference reserve. In 1977, with an association balance of $2,564.79, SEAHO established an administrative committee to oversee the "reserve fund.” It became an annual tradition for Bob Stewart, Director of Housing at the University of South Carolina , to report on the reserve fund. It is believed that Bob first mentioned the legendary steed, "Two-Step” in 1978. "Two-Step” became the means in which Bob reported the annual income and expenses of SEAHO. Of course, he reported the information as "winnings and losses, and the cost of oats” to maintain the mythical steed. Thus from year to year, when a new president assumed office, the Association and "Two-Step” became his or her responsibility. To make this transfer a more "visual” tradition, a horse blanket was donated with "Two-Step” lettered on it. So, at the conclusion of each term of office, during our closing luncheon, the blanket is passed to the new president. The Association, and the caring of "Two-Step” are given, with the expectation that both will flourish and prosper.

Submitted by
Gary Kimble
University of Southern Mississippi