Friends, memories, dinner, dancing, even a peek out the Berry Room window at the men's basketball game in the Nutter Center were all part of the Reunion Banquet that wrapped up Wright State's first-ever All-Class Reunion Weekend. Thirty-four members of Wright State's first graduating class received special recognition. Visitors recalled a campus of one building and marveled at the university's growth over the past 40 years.

Members of Wright State's first graduating class spent a warm, nostalgic evening at the first All-Class Reunion Banquet. As the photo shows, they still have their Raider pride and spirit!

For several who attended, being a part of Wright State's founding provided the opportunity to attend college. Betty Goodwin enrolled in the mid '60s at age 38 as a master's student in education. Living in Beavercreek, "it was like they built Wright State for me." Goodwin followed her Wright State days by teaching English and history at the Greene County Career Center.

Barbara Poynter-McEvoy agrees she might never have attended college were it not for the founding of Wright State. During her college days, McEvoy says the "friendliness" of the campus impressed her. Today, it's the "amazing growth."

"Wright State was compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) before there was an ADA," points out Steven Christian. "The tunnels were inspired by NCR leaders such as Allyn and Oelman," who were so instrumental in founding Wright State.

"The professors took an interest in you," said Judy Euth O'Ryan, an elementary education major. "Many students were older, married, or military spouses."

Connie McCarroll recalled how few athletics opportunities existed for women in the early days. Title IX changed all that and led to the surge in women's sports.

Lois Cook, a chemistry student, said the department was so enthusiastic about getting students "they greeted us at the door!"

Frustrated that sporadic dances were the only social life on campus, Susan Kramer Puckett and some friends started Phi Theta Omega, believed to be the first sorority at Wright State. The joyous reunion between Puckett, her sisters, and the others at the banquet demonstrated the warm feeling of community that existed in the university's earliest days and that continues today.