U-Belong: Jill Neil
As somebody who was born and raised in Massachusetts, I could not care less about the Boston Marathon, and I could care even less about our celebration for Marathon Monday.
I have no desire to sit there with other students and other strangers and watch people run, and yes, I know it’s about more than that.
It’s about community and celebrating being a tight-knit campus.
A lot of the people who pass by our campus on Marathon Monday are actually not Lasell students or alumni, which makes it feel a lot less Lasell-community-driven.
However, U-Belong is a different kind of celebration and is kept to only students, making it ideally better than Marathon Monday.
Our annual school-wide celebration, U-Belong, is fit for just our campus.
We don’t have random people from the street attending or hanging out with us; it is kept solely to our campus and to being a tight-knit on-campus community.
While it may be selfish to say that I prefer it this way, I do prefer having the opportunity to meet people who specifically attend our school over meeting people from all around.
It’s a great way to kick off the year and a great way to meet new people, no matter what year you are.
U-Belong is special because we’re gathering to celebrate the new academic year, while Marathon Monday is a little more boring, and we’re celebrating people whom we usually don’t know running a silly little marathon.
I also like the cultural aspect of U-Belong, which we don’t have for Marathon Monday.
You get to listen to music and try things from other cultures that may not be your own, while Marathon Monday is more barbecue style.
I think that celebrating the beginning of a new academic year and making new friends is a lot better than celebrating people running, and I will forever stand by that.
Marathon Monday: Aria Conti
I disagree that Marathon Monday is not Lasell-community-driven. Lasell alumni, staff, and students have run the marathon.
We are on mile 17 and get to spend all day cheering on others and having fun.
Lasell is more than just the students; it is the staff, families, neighbors, and friends who come to enjoy the event.
I think it gives a stronger sense of community than U-Belong and brings more people together.
There are lawn games at the Arnow Quad and hot dogs and burgers with music and fun for the students and those around us, like the Lasell villagers and the neighborhood families.
The Boston Marathon is also an important event in our history and something fun to celebrate.
It also raises money and awareness for many different things, such as breast cancer and other causes that are near and dear to people’s hearts.
Causes that bring people together to support something instead of just standing in line for free stuff.
Marathon Monday is about people coming together and supporting something and or someone that matters, and having a blast while doing it. That is why I think Marathon Monday is far better than U-Belong.
–April 7, 2026–