The Fellowship of the Ring ceremony is right around the corner for this year’s graduates. This ceremony has been a tradition for over a decade and is getting ready to celebrate its 20th anniversary. 

As per tradition, graduating Wolfpack members will place their class rings inside the shrine room of the Memorial Belltower overnight to absorb the energy of the Wolfpack merit.

The tradition states the spirits of Wolfpack past, present and future visit the Belltower and imbue NC State values into the rings. These values are meant to be held in the ring and carried by graduates as they continue to live the virtues of the Wolfpack.

Tom Stafford, former vice chancellor for student affairs and Memorial Belltower tour guide, said the original purpose of the ceremony was to create something special for the University.

“[The ring] encapsulates the spirit of NC State and the pride that we have in our great university,” Stafford said. “Now, the spirits… Wolfpack past, present and future. Each one of those spirits imbues the rings with a special characteristic.”

Stafford said the different spirits unite alumni and students with three values: pride, loyalty and tradition. He said the spirit of Wolfpack past connects students with alumni who’ve come before them, the spirit of Wolfpack present with pride in being a member of the Wolfpack and the spirit of Wolfpack future with loyalty to their alma mater.

Only students who have completed 60 or more credit hours are eligible to get a class ring. Stafford said the ring is so special because of its implications of academic success.  

“Not everybody can wear one of these, and not even every student who comes here gets to wear one,” Stafford said. “It connects the individual student with their academic major in their academic program, and in that sense, we hope the ring program will encourage students to do well academically and to continue to pursue academic activities even after they graduate.”

Malcolm Thompson, a third-year studying history and criminology, said his ring is a symbol of his experiences at NC State.

“NC State has given me one of the best experiences in my life, something that’ll always be memorable and something I’ll never forget,” Thompson said. “I feel like having that ring will always remind me of that experience.”

Stafford echoed Thompson’s sentiments about the ring being a symbol of pride among Wolfpack members. 

“Somebody sees [the ring], and they make a comment about it. You say, ‘Well, that’s my NC State ring,’” Stafford said. “That is an opportunity for you to respond to that comment with the Wolfpack pride.”

However, rings were not always allowed to be placed in the Belltower. Since the tradition began in 2005, Stafford said students have brought family members and Wolfpack alumni, who did not originally get the opportunity, to place their rings alongside each other in the shrine room of the Belltower.

Stafford expressed pride when recounting a story of a student who brought their grandfather, an NC State alumnus, to place his ring inside the Belltower. 

“Here is an 80-something-year-old guy who is feeling so proud of his ring that he’s got tears, and it makes me cry every time I think about it,” Stafford said.

Thompson said he will look back on his ring with fond memories of his time at NC State. He said the ring is a manifestation of his chosen major, the journey he took to make it to graduation and his dreams for his future.

“I know there are a lot of different ambitious goals I have and things I want to achieve,” Thompson said. “I feel that ring is going to symbolize the strength and for me to endure the challenges that are going to come with me, achieving the goals and my dreams in life.”

Thompson said the ring is a representation of how far he’s come and how hard he’s worked.

“That ring and everything else you know that you have to look back on, it gives me the assurance that I can press through and get to where I want to be,” Thompson said.