This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at FSU chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

One of FSU’s oldest and most adored traditions acts as a “rite of passage” for students, who get thrown in and swim a lap around Westcott Fountain on their 21st birthday.

On Feb. 12, every FSU student’s worst fear became real: Westcott Fountain was declared closed until further notice. This news came in an email and an Instagram post, ruining the hopes and dreams of every soon-to-be 21-year-old. Every night since the announcement, the fountain has been locked behind a chain link fence.

It was a decision that was made to prioritize the safety of our peers, as students have been climbing up the slippery concrete ledges, jumping from the top of the fountain, and breaking glass champagne bottles. Honestly, I can’t count how many times I’ve seen videos from fountain throws and just thought “Oof… ouch …jeez…” with how gruesome some of those falls are.

Past Closure

It’s not the first time the tradition has been under attack. In 2022, what started as a maintenance issue turned into FSU, preventing students from jumping into the fountain, by placing a small picket sign on the lawn that stated it was prohibited to do so. With the response from students and alumni, a petition with over 1,800 signatures, and the picket sign being stolen, Westcott Fountain reopened soon after.

Subsequent Updates

FSU has made it very clear how much they value the tradition and, hopefully, that this closure won’t last forever. For the last couple of weeks, they have been making slight adjustments to the fountain’s hours of operation to reopen it to students and test the waters slowly.

The first significant change came two weeks after the initial closure. FSU officials announced that every Wednesday, the fountain would be open from 9-10 p.m., and on every other day of the week, from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.  This would allow those celebrating their 21st to at least get some time to celebrate, although not at midnight; the announcement clarified that these times would allow for a balance between tradition and safety.

The next announcement was emailed to students and posted on Instagram on March 9. It read that on Thursday, March 12, the fountain would be open so that students could participate in the tradition.

Though FSU stated they prohibit students from climbing, jumping, and bringing glass bottles. “Failure to comply with these expectations may result in student conduct action and/or arrest as well as a return to closure of the fountain.”

My Experience From March 12

Lucky for me, I was able to go to a fountain throw that night. The one night only that Westcott would be open until who knows how long.

From what I could see, there was little to no climbing, and every time somebody even turned to try, there was a frantic “Nooo!” from their friends. It was relieving to see everybody holding each other accountable as we all try to hold tight onto this valuable tradition.

Whether everybody was complacent because of campus police (many officers were monitoring the fountain at midnight), I think that even without their presence, students’ fear of a permanently closed Westcott Fountain would hold them to that same accountability.

Now, that’s not to say new protocols aren’t necessary. The fear of its closure will eventually wear off, and students will be back to climbing in no time. The best-case scenario would be for the administration to come up with new procedures to maintain a safer tradition. What those changes could possibly be is up to the administration to determine the most effective way to do so.

Only time will tell how the administration moves forward after Westcott Fountain’s test run on March 12. Hopefully, to fully avoid a closure, changes will be made by the administration that preserve the valuable tradition, and the student body will maintain it.

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