More than just the Boulevard divides Meadows School of the Arts and Cox School of Business. But students in both of these schools do seem to have at least one thing in common: they both like to party.
Most “typical” Meadows kids don’t go to Cox kids’ parties, and vice versa. This one does, however. And while there are some aesthetic differences between these parties, they have more in common than you might think.
Before I say anything else, I must admit that I have absolutely no empirical evidence to go off of in writing this article—only my opinion. I’ll highlight some obvious differences between Meadows and Cox kids, and then I’ll go into what unites them, based on my experience.
But first, some definitions: by “Meadows kid,” I mean a non-Greek student of the arts. By “Cox kid,” I mean a Greek-affiliated student in business, finance or a STEM major in Lyle or Dedman. I’m sorry if you don’t fall into either of these categories—I know many of you don’t. But I’m using them to illustrate a point, because they are common stereotypes on our campus.
Many of you are probably skeptical of the claims I’m making in this article, so let’s go ahead and address some obvious differences between these two groups of students. In general, they have different ideas of party attire, and their events happen at different types of places. David Yurman can be found lurking in hazy Meadows apartments about as often as thrift-store overalls appear on the dance floor at Avenu.
These lines become blurred at themed parties, however. Many “Cox kid” date dashes unknowingly feature the Meadows look—especially those pertaining to music festivals or the 80s. Likewise, I’ve been to a “Meadows kid” party with a formal theme. I wore one of my actual formal dresses.
Many other factors unite Meadows and Cox kids when it comes to weekend activities. General party supplies are the same: cheap liquor, cheap wine, cheap beer—unless it’s a small group or a special occasion. Freshmen drink their nerves away and sometimes overdo it. Drinking games are played with equally competitive ferocity in both places.
At both types of party, single people do their best not to remain that way. Music is played too loudly. Noise complaints are received.
Outfits are envied. Gossip is spread. Canes is craved, and sometimes attained with the help of Über. New friendships are formed, old ones, strengthened. Laughs shared. Drinks spilled. Hearts filled.
While specifics such as type of music, brand of clothing, location of apartment and bar of choice may differ, the essentials of what people do at parties are universal. It’s actually pretty easy to switch from one crowd to the other (especially if you’re coming from a bohemian-themed party to one of your artist friends’ apartments). The benefits of experiencing both include a more open heart and mind, a more loving campus and a lot more friends.
Some seniors may recall from their freshmen days a certain house down University, near Love Field, where five members of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity lived and where they threw their parties.
Today, four years later, five Meadows seniors have moved into the same house. Some of them attended those parties when they were freshmen, too. Now, they continue the tradition.
