At Texas Wesleyan’s robing ceremony, more than 100 Texas Wesleyan students will have their graduation robes placed around them by a faculty member whose influence has been especially meaningful in their lives.

But what is the robing tradition and why is the robing tradition so loved by the Texas Wesleyan community?

Robing began in the late 1920s, when Texas Wesleyan University was still known as Polytechnic College, and was meant to illustrate the close ties between faculty and students at the school. Since that time, it has become a full-fledged collegiate tradition; thousands have marked their passage from student to graduate through the ceremony.

Robing is an awe-inspiring and joyful event. In a uniform display of academic tradition, the Texas Wesleyan faculty, dressed in academic regalia, walk across the University’s campus and into the hall. Family members of students smile – and cry – as they snap photos and shoot videos of their proud graduates. Some faculty members commemorate the event by bringing a gift for their students. Hugs happen at a per-second rate.

It’s the kind of tradition you could only have at a small school with a vibrant faculty like Texas Wesleyan’s. It’s the kind of tradition that often gets lost in the rush of tens of thousands of students filing through graduation at bigger universities. It’s a tradition that students never forget.

The Fall 2013 ceremony is scheduled for 11 a.m. Friday, Dec. 13, in Martin Hall. The ceremony precedes commencement, which will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 14, at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary's MacGorman Chapel.