Juniors and seniors receive their class rings

By Zoe Finholm//

Twelve Hood College juniors and seniors received their class rings during a ceremony on April 15.

Madyson Ashcraft, Trinity Cover, Juveria Kulsum, Markela Porter and Levi White received ring scholarships and Julia Aldred, Riley Fitz, Catherine Jenkins, Julie Karlsson, Faith Kiser, Kinsey Walker and Dorian Young received legacy rings.

Ring scholarships cover the cost of the basic ring and are awarded to applicants who were reviewed and selected by members of the Alumni Executive Board. Hood uses Herff Jones for its rings. Women’s rings start at $599 and men’s rings start at $602.

Alums can also donate their rings to the Legacy Ring program, and Alumni Executive Board members select students based on their application and if they have a donated ring in their size.

Director of Alumni and Constituent Engagement Kellye Greenwald describes the Legacy Rings as a “Cinderella situation.” They have to make sure the ring fits and is given to a student who will benefit from it.

The ring scholarship was started so that male students can receive a ring without having to pay. Since Hood used to be an all-girls school, there aren’t many male rings being donated to the program yet. Derrick Harrigan, class of 2007, is the first and only male to donate their ring.

“The importance of the ring is it’s a tangible, visible connector,” Greenwald said. She said she wears her ring every day, and she’ll talk with alums who have met each other by noticing the ring.

Several years ago, Greenwald was on a family cruise while wearing her ring. She was reaching across the counter at the breakfast bar, and she feels someone grab her arm and said: “oh my God, did you go to Hood?” They talked about their experience, where they lived and what they studied, and they would hold up their ring when they saw each other throughout the remainder of the cruise. 

Junior Cori Mark purchased her ring and it was presented to her at the ceremony. Mark’s brother graduated from Hood, so she said she feels more connected to the college. “The Hood College ring carries a legacy that I desired to be a part of,” Mark said. “The ring will remind me of my Hood education and friendships well beyond graduation.”

Students can order their rings during their junior year and they can also apply for ring scholarships or legacy rings. Applications for ring scholarships and legacy rings will go out in the fall of 2023, and questions about class rings can be sent to greenwald@hood.edu.