At the annual freshman convocation, the Vice President and Dean for Undergraduate Education Robert Pangborn explained numerous Penn State traditions from eating an ice cream cone at the Creamery to visiting the Lion Shrine, including those traditions he deemed obsolete.

"Freshmen wearing beanies -- thankfully, for you, this tradition has gone by the wayside," he said.

However, Nick Stathes, Undergraduate Student Government (USG) president, said wearing beanies is not the only custom that has hit the skids.

"I was interested in speaking at the convocation. It's a tradition that the USG president be invited to speak," he said. "By not inviting me to speak, Vicky Triponey is breaking a tradition that I don't even know she is aware of."

Triponey, vice president for student affairs, deferred all questions to Felicia McGinty, associate vice president of student engagement.

In the spring, Penn State administration opted to support a new student government, not the previously endorsed USG. The newly supported government, University Park Undergraduate Association (UPUA), will hold elections Oct. 11. For the third year in a row, Galen Foulke, the student representative to the Board of Trustees and former USG president, spoke at the event. Foulke was a prominent figure in pushing UPUA as the new form of student government.

"This is saying that the best person to represent the student body is someone appointed by the governor of Pennsylvania. It's ridiculous," Stathes said. "[Foulke] is a tool of the administration."

McGinty said the appointment of student speakers is an administrative decision.

"My understanding is that sometimes that person is the USG president. Sometimes it's the student representative to the Board of Trustees. Then, there have been times when there was no student speaker,"
she said. "Speaking at the convocation is not a right. It's a privilege."

Despite a conversation with Triponey and McGinty, Stathes said the appointment of Foulke as a speaker was a personal attack.

"We have disagreed with them on various issues in the past," he said. "I know it's a privilege. I'm asking what I did to be denied that privilege. That's the price of dissent with Dr. Triponey and student affairs."

During the convocation, Foulke advised freshmen about the importance of becoming involved with an interest group, particularly student advocacy organizations.

"I encourage you to get involved in student government," he said. "It's kind of a big deal here. People know what it is."

He encouraged all freshmen to participate in UPUA elections.

"After 44 years of an outdated and dysfunctional student government, UPUA is a true testament to the passion of Penn State," he said.

McGinty said the message, not the speaker, is highly considered when choosing convocation speakers.

"I heard Galen speak last year," she said. "It's important for the speaker to give advice to the students. Certainly that should come from a student leader. I know Nick was very disappointed about not being selected."

Stathes said the decision will make a working relationship with student affairs difficult, but he will continue to work toward student advocacy.

"It's impossible to be a successful student government without working with student affairs," he said. "They want USG to fail, but we're not going to let that happen."