LogFAQs > #876741324

Today, April 7th, happens to be Aggie Ring Day! All the Aggies who qualified for a ring in the Fall and Winter semesters are collecting their rings this morning and evening. Families and friends are lined up by the thousands, waiting for their chance to see and wear the coveted class ring.

Here's a short history of the Aggie Ring!
The first ring was made in 1889, thirteen years after the college was founded. After changing manufacturers and jewelers for a while, the ring was standardized at the turn of the century. The ring had the last two digits of the class year and a shield on it, with the state seal on one side and a crossed saber, rifle, and canon on the other. In 1912 and 1926, the side that each of those things was on switched. In 1931, the first class hours requirement to qualify for a ring was set up (had to have completed your second junior semester), and in 1933, the words "Texas A&M College - 1876" were added. Two years later, the lettering was changed to "A&M College of Texas - 1876." After changing manufacturers a few more times and some troubles with World War II going on, the Office of the Registrar became in charge of handing out Aggie Rings. In 1948, we found the perfect Aggie Ring maker, and have stuck with them since. The Texas Legislature changed the name of Texas Agriculture & Machanical College to Texas A&M University (the A&M no longer standing for anything) in 1963, and so the lettering on the ring was once again changed to reflect that. The last major change to the ring came in 1998, when the ring + band stopped coming as a pair, and the ring began to be manufactured as a one piece set.

Now, let me tell ya, Aggies are crazy about this ring. People who have one are treated way better than those who don't. Not getting your Ring is like, insane. I've seen strangers on Reddit give hundreds of dollars away to complete strangers so they could wear their ring and flip it on their graduation day - a tradition we've done for decades now. Back in WWII, men in the military were only allowed to wear a ring on their finger if it was their wedding ring, so there are old stories of Aggies coming together before their ship off day and soldering their two rings together. We have a collection of Aggie Rings on campus that are donated to the school from notable alumni. There are stories of people losing their rings in different countries and the rings being sent back to the university and eventually back to their owner. Recently there was a story in the news about a guy who found one at a pawn shop in San Antonio, and people all pitched in to buy it, find its original owner, and give it back to her. You're not EVER supposed to give up your ring, and if you see one, its said that you should automatically recognize that the person you're talking to is someone of value and honor.

I won't get my ring until September 2018, but I've gone to a few ring day celebrations and it's so great to see everyone's hard work pay off :)
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Proud to be EPic
That was gr8 b8 m8, pls don't h8 because I r8 8/8. - LanHikari10