Trick or Treating at the Lyceum
Willie Price Lab School is the preschool on the University of Mississippi campus for children who are two through five. It is operated by the School of Education and licensed by the Mississippi Department of Health. It is often dubbed “the happiest place on campus” because of the joy clearly shown by the students and teachers.
One of the traditions of Willie Price Lab School is the annual trick or treating around campus done by all the students on October 31, Halloween Day. While I could not find a specific date for when this tradition began, current director Alyse Krouse said she knew they had been doing it since at least 2000.
The university covered the event in 2013 and 2014 with video post by Ryan Whittington and Mary Stanton Knight. In these videos you see several young Wilie Price students going through a Halloween decorated Lyceum while collecting candy from UM employees. It is hard to tell who is enjoying the event more, the Lyceum staff or the Willie Price children and parents.
In 2023, the UM Libraries officially joined their trick or treating route to hand out candy and mini sized play dough.
The Libraries joined again in 2024, which is the first academic year that Willie Price Lab School has had a 2K class. The additional class meant the number of trick or treaters grew this year to 122 from 106 in 2023.
The Willie Price students walk with their parents, teachers, and classmates from the school in Kinard Hall to Martindale-Cole where they trick-or-treat the various student services departments. This year they then traveled to the front of the Lyceum and walked through the main hallway to trick or treat and across the garden-way to J.D. William Library. Several library faculty, staff, and student workers from the library supplied the trick-or-treaters with board books, play dough, glow light necklaces, and of course, candy!
Before ending their route with the Oxford Fire Department and their truck, all the Willie Price Lab School students and teachers gathered on the front steps of J.D. Williams Library to capture their annual photo.
