Then & Now:
IT’S 2012:
DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOUR CLASS RING IS? By John Duffy
H
as the long-standing tradition of a class ring to commemorate graduation gone forever?
Once a universal symbol of accomplishment that commanded respect, opened doors and set one apart as a graduate, the class ring has lost its luster among newer graduates. By most accounts the tradition of the class ring in America began at West Point in 1853. Thirteen years later the 42 graduates of the Virginia Military Institute paid $5 a piece for theirs, roughly half a month’s salary in the Army at the time. While the class ring grew in popularity through the first half of the 20th century, it really wasn’t until after World War II, when college admissions climbed dramatically and high school life became the epitome of youth culture, that the class ring became universal. Sales of high school class rings peaked in the 1970s, with their college counterparts not far behind. A recent Chicago Sun-Times article speculated that as few as 10 percent of students bother purchasing a ring to symbolize the accomplishment of graduation. Why is this? Depending on who you ask, the answer could be economic, cultural or simply due to bad marketing choices. College ring sellers blame themselves. In order to stem a slide in sales, they offered an ever-growing number of options beginning in the 1980s, ways for each student to personalize his or her ring. But that a la carte approach backfired in the long run, they say. With so many choices to personalize, the ring quickly lost its unifying symbolism. 10 Review Summer 2012
These days one can purchase a ring depicting virtually any college or university at Wal-Mart for as little as $200, or purchase one from a licensed vendor for more than a thousand dollars. To counter the downward trend, Balfour—one of the top ring sellers in North America—created a manual to help college administrators revive the tradition of a “ring culture” on campus. Central to the plan is encouraging institutions to choose one ring with only the most basic of possible variations: a philosophy that parallels colleges and universities where class rings remain popular. For many, it may just come down to a question of money. Dr. Michael Gumpper, economics professor and director of Millersville’s Center for Economic Education, thinks the ring is simply no longer the status indicator it once was. “As important as a college education still is to a financially rewarding career, it is simply not the unique achievement it was 30 to 50 years ago.” In the United States, college enrollment between 1970 and 2009 has more than doubled. Yet the amount of debt students have taken on to pay for that first degree has doubled in just 10 years. And, while still only 20 percent of Americans hold college degrees, Gumpper says, “It may simply not be as special anymore.” While he is unaware of any research regarding ring sales and what they mean to the larger economy, Gumpper says some ordinary rules still apply. “There is always an additional, intangible value that people buy every time they purchase a product. If that nonmonetary value of the college ring has diminished, it is hard to justify the purchase just based on the value offered by its price.”