No Titus for These Saints?

Titus Weekend has long been a cherished tradition of the SLU community. For weeks in advance kids regale their friends with embellished stories of past Titus Weekend’s, reliving drunken memories and remembering the good times. However, not all get to indulge in this reminiscing. For many saints, Titus Weekend is only Titus Weekend in name, as they have never experienced the real thing.  

Last year, Titus Weekend was spent here, on campus. For first-year students such as myself, we had heard the rumbling of the upper-class students as the weekend drew closer, and our excitement grew with every overheard tale. However, among the talk was a vein of discontent.  

For many, this was the first time Titus had been, well, not at Titus. Many were disappointed with the decision to keep the festivities on campus. Despite the change from what the university normally delivers, most of the student body was still happy that something would be held at all.  

The event was enjoyed by many students who welcomed the reprieve from the stress of student life. But many upper-class students hoped this was temporary, and that their beloved Titus Weekend would return to its former glory.  

Such students found themselves utterly disappointed this week with the revile that, once again; Titus Weekend would be held on campus. And perhaps even worse, under a new name, Rail Jam. This suggests that this change might be permanent.  

While this might be a hard pill to shallow for upper-class students, it is the new students who are the real victims. “I was told all these stories about how awesome having the whole mountain is” said Ashley Molina ’26, “And now I worry I’ll never experience that, like I am being robbed of something the university promised.”   

First-year students and sophomores have not had the real Titus experience unlike their upper-class counterparts who can at least remember a time when Titus Weekend meant going to Titus Mountain. 

For new SLU students, Titus Weekend (or Rail Jam), is going to mean a completely different thing than Titus Mountain veterans. It is a shame considering the unique addition to SLU culture that Titus Weekend has on campus. And with such a prized tradition seemingly disappearing, it calls into question what is considered sacred by the university, if anything.  

Many still wish for Titus Weekend to return to Titus and for this event to be considered as important to the administration as it is to the students. However, these students must speak now or forever hold their peace, as the memory of Titus Weekend fades. And becomes gradually replaced by a new Titus Weekend, one that has nothing to do with Titus Mountain, and everything to do with the administration’s poor financial management.  

As the Outing Club said themselves, “We will not be traveling to Titus Mountain this year due to a lack of funding. However, our heart is still in celebrating the outdoors and enjoying winter with all you peeps.”