Selfie signs hit campus for commencement

Four large, portable UB selfie signs are being placed around campus for commencement week to help make the season just a little more memorable for graduates and their families.

Selfie signs have become popular on college campuses as part of individual or group photos commemorating important milestones or “selfie moments,” such as orientation and commencement.

“Many of us in University Facilities have wanted to place selfie signs on campus for years, after seeing them at other universities,” says Kelly Hayes McAlonie, director of campus planning. “When we priced their fabrication last year, they were cost prohibitive.”

But University Facilities has since acquired a new laser cutter and vinyl printer, which allowed Facilities Operations to fabricate the signs in-house.

The project was a group effort, says Chris Donacik, assistant director of campus operations.

The Office of the Provost provided the funding for the materials. The signs were designed by Katie Hazel, an environmental design and signage coordinator, and Daniel Seiders, a landscape architectural planner, both from Campus Planning.

And the sign-making was done by Robert Borden, Justin Compo, John Laffosse, John McHugh, Karl Mackowiak and Michael Kern in the skilled trade shops of Facilities Operations.

The signs measure roughly 4 feet high and 8 feet wide. One is an interlocking UB, while another depicts the head of a bull. One reads “2026” and another “BUFFALO.”

Signs will be placed at three locations on the North Campus during commencement week: in front of the Center for the Arts, at Baird Point and at Hamilton Loop with Capen Hall in the background.

Another selfie sign will be placed on the South Campus near the bus loop, between Foster and Crosby halls, where Abbott Library is in the background.

If the selfie signs are a hit, Hayes McAlonie says, adding them at other milestone dates will be considered.

A trial run of the signs already proved popular during the May 1 ceremonies for the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and the School of Dental Medicine, Donacik says.

“Despite being designed and produced on very short notice, the team delivered exceptional results. The attention to design, creativity and detail are seen in the finished product,” Donacik says. “I am proud to be associated with colleagues who are ‘True Blue’ and want a celebratory atmosphere for commencement attendees.”