Black Alumni Reunion FAQs

Black Alumni Reunion is a long-standing OHIO tradition. Dating back more than 40 years, the reunion was championed and originally organized by Ohio University graduates, many of them from the 1950s—a group that’s often referred to as the Soulful Bobcats . Today, the OUAA works with an active and dedicated planning committee that engages alumni, students, faculty, and staff in the reunion's planning and execution. BAR is a celebration of the university’s rich history that draws more than 1,000 alumni and friends to Athens every three years. All members of the Bobcat community are invited to attend.

The Black Alumni Reunion will be celebrated on campus from Thursday, April 10, 2025 - Sunday, April 13, 2025.

The BAR schedule is now available! We will continue updating and adding to the schedule in the following months. Check back often!

Yes, please let us know you’re coming! Sharing your plans to attend by registering , allows us to tailor events and make accommodations accordingly.

After you complete your BAR registration, you can add or remove activities. In your confirmation email, click the link that says, “View and manage your registration.” On your registration summary page, click the button to “Add Activities.” If you add an activity that has a fee, you will need to submit payment to add that to your registration. To remove an activity, click the trash icon next to any free activities you want to remove. If you want to remove a paid activity, you will need to request a partial refund by emailing the Advancement Events team at eventsadv@ohio.edu .

If you need to edit any of your information (email address, mailing address, t-shirt size, etc.), email eventsadv@ohio.edu to make that update. If you need to add a guest, you can complete a BAR regi s tration to get your guest registered.

The OUAA has connected with local hotels in an effort to hold as many room blocks as possible for BAR. That said, hotels will fill up quickly as they do for all major weekends on campus. Please visit the Athens County Visitor’s Bureau’s website for complete information about lodging in and near Athens.

Here are a few hotels with room blocks set aside for BAR. We kindly ask that you please do not reserve more than two roomsto ensure everyone has a chance to come back and enjoy this special weekend. Please be advised that there is a finite number of blocked rooms, and they will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Fairfield Inn
Ohio University Inn
Holiday Inn
Hampton Inn
The Lodge at Hocking College - request the Black Alumni Reunion block of rooms

The OUAA has no control over any local hotel rates during big weekends in Athens county — including Commencement, Homecoming, BAR, Family Weekends, etc. — and is not able to offer discount codes.

Yes. The planning committees are looking for meaningful ways to include students in the weekend.

Immediately following BAR 2022, a fall weekend was tentatively set aside for 2025. When that weekend was later announced as when the OHIO Bobcats would take on The Ohio State University Buckeyes in an away football game, BAR organizers began to consider alternative options for the reunion. Spring was identified quickly as the best option for the gathering.

As some of you may remember, BAR moved to the Fall when Ohio University switched to semesters in (2012).  Prior to that, BAR had been in the spring to ensure students were able to participate and experience this celebration of OHIO’s Black alumni community. The ongoing question of when to hold BAR is a very complex one that factors in many variables such as local events, campus wide events, family weekends, athletic competitions, and more.

Weekends in September and October are already heavily programmed with First Year Convocation, Welcome Week, home Football, Homecoming, Parents Weekend, and more. The semester begins on August 25. Hosting BAR during an academic semester requires collaboration with campus partners through the University’s event space scheduling process, which begins a year in advance. This process, and all access to event space, is managed by University Event Services, an office within the Division of Student Affairs. During this process student organizations, academic units, and non-academic units (including the OUAA) request space. Competition is tremendous, and Event Services places priority on student and academic events (NOTE: Student fees fund Baker Center and its operations; therefore, student events get priority access to that space).

Call your Ohio University Alumni Association (OUAA) at 740-593-4300 or email  alumni@ohio.edu . 

Please click on the link to submit your event for consideration. A committee will review all event requests and will respond back to you with additional questions, if necessary, followed by event approvals and/or denials.

Submit an Event

The Go OHIO app , the new official app of Ohio University, now has a BAR 2025 experience. Download the app for event updates, parking and transportation information, and more.