The week of Nov. 3-9 is NC State’s annual Red & White Week. The week is NC State’s homecoming week and gives students an opportunity to show pride in their university and alumni to come back and reconnect with campus. One of the staples of homecoming week is Wear Red, Get Fed which gives students an incentive to show school spirit by wearing red.

Wear Red, Get Fed is held every day of the week, according to Anna Scott Wingfield, a fourth-year studying biology and the director of homecoming for the NC State Alumni Association Student Ambassadors. Between noon and 1 p.m., or until supplies last, students can come to Wolf Plaza wearing a red or NC State-affiliated shirt to receive free food.

Lindsay Kelly, a third-year studying industrial engineering and the co-director of homecoming for NC State Alumni Association Student Ambassadors, said the food offered at Wear Red, Get Fed changes every day. On Monday, Nov. 4, it was Domino’s Pizza. On Tuesday, Zaxby’s will take over, followed by Jimmy John’s and Insomnia Cookies on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively, and Rave! catering will close out the week-long event on Friday, Nov. 8.

Wingfield explained why the Alumni Association Student Ambassadors continue to host this event every year.

“It encourages NC State pride because there’s more people wearing NC State colors on campus,” Wingfield said. “It helps address the issue of food insecurity on campus, because we’re able to provide meals for students who may not have a meal for that day if it wasn’t for Wear Red, Get Fed.”

According to Wingfield, Wear Red, Get Fed is also part of the Group Spirit competition that occurs throughout the week. This competition involves student organizations competing to gain spirit points throughout the week with the winner being announced at the homecoming football game on Saturday, Nov. 9. Groups will gain points at Wear Red, Get Fed for the percentage of people that show up that are listed on their organizations’ rosters.

“Wear Red, Get Fed is probably the event that has the most students participate that are not in the competition, but there are plenty of events that students are welcome to but it’s just a matter of us getting it out there,” Kelly said.

According to Wingfield, the tradition of homecoming has a fairly recent history at NC State.

“The first homecoming football game was in 1990 and it was just a football game,” Wingfield said. “2006 is when it became homecoming week and 2016 is when they adopted the name of Red & White Week, which is just to support the Think and Do the Extraordinary campaign to raise money for NC State.”

Kelly said homecoming week is important because it allows students to connect to each other and alumni in ways that are not usually possible.

“For current students, it’s a big deal because it helps encourage pride in your university,” Kelly said. “It gets everyone excited for the game, but it also connects current students to alumni, and it gives alumni a chance to come back and reconnect with the students that are still here.”

According to Wingfield, other events for the rest of Red & White Week include the first home basketball game on Tuesday, Nov. 5, a pep rally and a lip-sync battle on Thursday, Nov. 7, and the Homecoming Parade on Friday, Nov. 8.

Wingfield said Leigh-Kathryn Bonner, an NC State alumna who founded Bee Downtown, a company that focuses on places honeybee hives on the tops of buildings in Downtown Raleigh will be speaking on Wednesday, Nov. 6, in Talley Ballroom. 

For a complete list of Red & White Week events, visit the Red & White Week website. For more information about the Alumni Association Student Ambassadors, visit their website.