By Erin Furman
They arrive dutifully at every football game, volleyball game, wrestling match, basketball game and open house. They dance when the music plays and high five fans as they pass. They put smiles on the faces of those around them, young and old alike.
To visitors of the University, they are recognized as the school's two mascots, a male and female lion representing "Hofstra Pride." To the University community, they are known as Kate and Willy.
But who are the students underneath the suits?
Mascotting has quickly become "the cool thing to do," according to Spirit Support graduate assistant Samantha Rozakis. In past years, Spirit Support, the department that organizes the University's pep band, the dance team, cheerleaders, national anthem singers and the mascots, felt lucky if it had five or six student mascots at a given time.
Now, Rozakis has 15 hired mascots and has had to turn interested people away.
Senior Amanda Rack and freshman Andrew Schuetz arrived at the arena on Saturday, March 4, 45 minutes before the start of one of the last home men's basketball games of the season, ready to suit up and greet Hofstra fans as they arrived at the game.
Rack, a double major in accounting and dance, is enjoying her second semester as a Hofstra mascot. She said she always liked taking pictures with mascots as a child and thought it would be fun to have the chance to become the mascot other children would want to take pictures with. Her favorite part of mascotting is "having all the little kids come up to you and slap your hand and take pictures.... Even though you're under the mask, you'll still smile when they take your pictures."
An active member of the community, Rack has been a part of various dance groups, as well as Alpha Kappa Psi, the co-ed professional business fraternity. Employed with Student Computing Services as a student assistant for the past two years, she also works a second job as a teaching assistant for Professor Tinkleman in the department of Accounting, Taxation and Legal Studies in Business.
Schuetz, a business entrepreneurship major, first learned about mascotting when Rozakis chaperoned his Freshman Orientation Part II trip at the beginning of last fall semester. Soon after, he saw her with two of the mascots during a club fair.
"The next thing I knew, I was in her office signing a paper," he said.
Of all the events mascots typically attend, men's basketball games are Schuetz's favorite. "There are never enough people at women's [basketball] games," he said.
In addition mascotting, he works as a Team Leader for Resident Safety and as a recruiter and tour guide for University admissions.
According to Rozakis, something all the mascots have in common is the desire to become more involved in the community, an outgoing personality and the ability to be able to deal with children.
"That's really key," said Rozakis. "You have to love kids."
Mascotting does have its downfalls, however. The suits themselves are very hot and sweaty, an issue that matters more at stuffy, indoor events and outdoor events when the temperature is already high.
Last Homecoming in particular was one of those hot, stuffy days. "It was so so hot," said Rozakis, adding that at a lot of events, "it's all about the heat."
And the best part of mascotting?
"The fact that no one really knows who is under the costume," said Rack. "You can be whoever you want to be."
Kate captures the attention of a little boy. (Erin Furman)