More than 60 years ago, when the university was still Texas Technological College, it was Bill Dean who pulled the switch that lit up Carol of Lights for the first time.
Now, after graduating from Texas Tech in 1961, becoming a husband and father and retiring after a 54-year teaching career, he said the tradition’s amazement hasn’t wavered.
“The magic moment is when the lights come on,” he said.
Dean, a retired associate emeritus professor in public relations and strategic communication management, first flipped the lights when he was student body president back in 1961, the year the Carol of Lights was made official.
Before the celebration became what it is today, Dean said it was initially hosted by Gene Hemmle, former chair and director of Tech’s Department of Music, with a small collection of students drinking hot cocoa and singing Christmas carols in the Science Quadrangle parking lot.
However, after Harold Hinn, a Tech Regent from 1957-69, donated a large sum of money to purchase lights and decorate the buildings, Carol of Lights quickly began to grow in both size and spectacle.
Dean said he was invited to kick off the celebration because of his role at the time as student body president. He didn’t expect the tradition, however, to become a mainstay of the Tech holiday season.
“I didn’t realize it was going to grow into the tradition that it is today,” Dean said. “Obviously, it was an honor, but I thought this is just one of the things that they want the student body president to do.”
With this December’s celebration marking the 67th Annual Carol of Lights, Dean said the extent to which the event has grown is almost unbelievable.
“When you think back to how meager it was to start with and what it has become, it’s mind-boggling,” he said.
Since pulling that switch back in 1961, Dean said he’s seen the occasion evolve and change many times. Some of the most notable instances have been the addition of more lights, fireworks, drones and musical artists, such as Lost Wax and American Authors during 2023 and 2024’s Carol of Lights, respectively.
Texas Tech associate professor emeritus Bill Dean looks down at a bell that is displayed in his office inside the College of Media & Communication building Nov. 19, 2025.
Makayla Perez
Yet, he said one constant has always been the carols, which the community has continued to sing since roughly 50 people huddled together in front of the former Science Building in 1959.
“We sang the same carols. They haven’t changed,” Dean said. “But it was much smaller — the lights only covered a couple of buildings, and the crowds were (small).”
Dean not only pulled the first switch to kick off the celebration, but he was also invited to start Carol of Lights a second time in 2018 for the event’s 60th anniversary.
It was here where he was reminded of the many times he attended the occasions over the years, whether that was by himself as a student or with his wife, Peggy, and their two children.
“It brought back a lot of memories,” he said. “My wife and I, we never missed one.”
Through freezing temperatures, pouring rain and even West Texas heat, Dean said his family never skipped a single Carol of Lights, making sure they saw campus illuminated by red and green each year.
“My wife and I would go, and then we had children,” Dean said. “We would take them through thick and thin, and some nights I was pretty damn cold.”
Facilities Maintenance, in collaboration with a number of Tech departments, is primarily in charge of putting the lights up around campus beginning in early October through late November.
Rich Cartwright, senior managing director for Facilities Maintenance, has been in charge for roughly 18 years, viewing plenty of Carol of Lights during his time.
He said seeing the lights flip on each year never gets old, showcasing the dedication it takes to get most of the campus prepared for the holiday season.
“You put all this work and manpower into it, and when you actually see it happen, it’s just a good feeling,” Cartwright said.
He said it’s a rewarding experience for anyone who pulls the switch, but especially for Dean, given he was the first to officially begin the Carol of Lights itself.
“It’s got to be an emotional feeling, knowing that you did the switch for that day, for that year,” Cartwright said.
Now, after being the very first to pull the switch and seeing over 65 years of the Carol of Lights, Dean said the celebration holds a special place in his heart, even beating out many of his other favorite Tech traditions.
“That would be my favorite tradition: the Carol of Lights,” Dean said. “The Masked Rider at the football game is great, but this involves so many people, and they come from everywhere to see it.”