By ESTHER YU
Often taken for granted, BYU's traditions make being part of this campus a unique experience.
One hallmark tradition at BYU is the creative flair students put into asking each other to dances.
Jodi Chapman, 19, a sophomore from Plymouth, Mich., majoring in mathematics, said she asked a man to preference last year by sending him a warning from the Honor Code Office. The end of the warning said the only way to make restitution for the offense would be to go to preference with her, Chapman said.
Her date responded by sending her an 'official' letter from 'some head honcho missionary guy,' which included a yes in it, Chapman said.
Tunnel singing is one of the newer campus traditions. On Sunday, students meet under the overpass to the south of the Marriott Center and sing hymns from 10 p.m. to 11 p.m.
The tradition began in 1989 with a group of friends who met there to sing Depeche Mode songs said Nephi Noble, 28, from Anchorage, Alaska, a doctorate student earning his Ph.D. in mathematics.
However, the group grew larger until hundreds of students were coming from the dorms. Because some people began taking away from the spirituality of the singing or arguing over which songs should be sung, individuals began leading the singing sessions, Noble said.
A few hundred currently come to tunnel singing.
Two traditions on a more daily level are the ringing of the bell tower and the raising and lowering of the American flag.
Construction of current bell tower was started in early 1975. The tower is 90 feet tall with 52 bronze bells, according to 'Brigham Young University, 100 Views of 100 Years' by Edwin Butterworth, Jr.
The idea of a bell tower is said to have originated from the bell used to call pioneers to meetings and prayers. BYU's bells have been through a lot during the years. The first one was destroyed by a fire in 1884.Another bell was replaced because its materials gave it an awkward-sounding ring. Later, a bell was cracked by vigorous ringing. After the next bell was stolen and found submerged in water in Springville, the last bell tower was made high enough to discourage vandalism, according to 'BYU, the First 100 Years, Volume 3,' edited by Ernest L. Wilkinson.
The tower plays 'Come, Come Ye Saints' to indicate the start of a new hour.
Another tradition, the raising and lowering of the American flag, gives those on campus an opportunity to pay respect to the United States. The flag is raised at 7:30 a.m. and taken down at 5:30 p.m. A trumpet sound is played over campus at these times, followed by the 'Star-Spangled Banner.'
When they hear the trumpet, most people on campus stop, place their hands over their hearts and wait for the ceremony to draw to a close.
'Sometimes when I've seen them take down the flag it's given me a minute to reflect on America and how glad I am to live in a free country,' said alumna Julie Lefevre, who works at the Abraham O. Smoot Administration Building.
'I think its so neat but I am disappointed in the people that don't respect the men and women that died for our country enough to stop and pay their respect,' said Jen Fajen, 19, a sophomore from Cincinnati, majoring in speech pathology.
Another popular tradition revolves around the Y on the mountain to the east of campus. Groups hike to it throughout the year. As well, BYU students do service projects to clean up the Y every few years.
'We still have surface projects several times a year, resurfacing the Y, cleaning brush around it.... Students are as involved as they will be,' said Roy Peterman, director of grounds.
All three letters of the school were originally meant to be on the mountain. The 'B' and the 'U' were never created because the 'Y' was already so much more work than intended, according to 'BYU, The First 100 Years.'