By Cindy Chung, News Correspondent

This year’s Homecoming theme, “There’s No Place Like Northeastern,” is intended to promote unity among the members of the multifaceted university community.

“We are a school where people are always coming and going,” said Brittiny Rae Gagnon, junior health science major and Homecoming Committee co-chair. “They’re going away on co-op or study abroad, but they all come back here to Northeastern in Boston.”

Homecoming Week 2010 kicked off Sunday afternoon and will continue until the final buzzer at the men’s hockey game against Providence College on Saturday night. With events ranging from a student talent show to a stand-up performance by Lonely Island comedian Andy Samberg, the week gives students the chance to come together and celebrate their Husky pride.

Junior engineering major and Homecoming Committee Co-chair Aaron Gill said the events were selected in hopes of appealing to students of all backgrounds.

“There are so many different students from so many different places – not just from the United States, but across the globe,” Gill said. “Bringing everyone together creates the Homecoming atmosphere that we’re looking for.”

Gill recalls feeling let down by Homecoming when he transferred to Northeastern two years ago, but has high expectations for this year.

“Northeastern is twice the size of [my hometown]. You couldn’t walk out of your house without seeing something related to Homecoming, so not having it be a big deal as I was walking … around campus was shocking,” Gill said. “But I think especially after last year and now this year, it’s growing into something much bigger.”

He and Gagnon attribute the expansion of this year’s Homecoming to a higher number of student organizations.

“What really made this Homecoming big was getting all areas of the community involved,” Gagnon said. “We tried to add events that play out to a different audience.”

In addition to variety, availability was one of the Homecoming Committee’s major goals.

“We tried to do different events each night so that people on co-op or with jobs can come to later events,” Gagnon said.

Gill said the committee also tried to add an “international feel.”

“There are so many different students from so many different places, not only from the United States but across the globe,” Gill said. “And they all bring their own personal experiences back to Northeastern to make it their new home.”

While new events such as the trivia night and talent show were added, the week still sticks to traditions, such as the election of Homecoming King and Queen.

The 2010 Court encompasses a variety of student organizations. Though most candidates represent sororities and fraternities, non-Greek councils such as the Residential Student Association also have students running, as well as ethnic groups like the Black Student Association.

The classic “Meet the Court” event took place Oct. 14. “Meet the Court” provides the opportunity for students to learn more about the Homecoming King and Queen candidates – and cheer their hearts out for their favorites.

This year’s “Meet the Court” was styled like a game show and was comprised of two parts: “Double Dare” and “Don’t Forget the Lyrics.”

For “Double Dare,” the candidates were split into three teams and asked trivia about Northeastern and Boston. The teams either chose to answer the question or dare the next team. If dared, the next team could answer or double dare the first team. If a team gave a wrong answer, they had to complete a physical challenge.

“Don’t Forget the Lyrics” featured pop songs ranging from “Just Dance” by Lady Gaga to “Fat Lip” by Sum 41 to the “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” theme song. The game culminated with the audience and all the candidates singing along to “Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey.

Gagnon said the sing-a-long epitomized the meaning of Homecoming.

“It was pretty goofy, but we were all doing it together,” Gagnon said. “Those are the kind of things you remember.”

But some students still have feelings of alienation. As their time at Northeastern comes to an end, many seniors are apathetic toward Homecoming.

“In the five years that I’ve been here, [Homecoming] has never been a big deal,” said Dan Gonyea, senior computer science and multimedia studies major. “Through my dual major, I have exposure to a lot of different types of people, some of which probably have school spirit, and I’ve never heard it mentioned.”

Senior pharmacy major Nick Pariaros agrees, saying he wasn’t even aware Homecoming week had started.

“They never stressed school pride from the beginning, so I just never got into it,” Pariaros said.

Gonyea also said the co-op program breeds indifference toward Homecoming because it separates students from Northeastern for six months.

“It makes me less likely to celebrate school spirit if I’m furthering my career in other ways,” said Gonyea, who has completed three co-ops.

But the committee encourages all students to attend events, whether they have school spirit or not.

“These events are designed to be fun and are designed for anyone,” Gagnon said.

Gagnon and Gill believe the Homecoming experience is ultimately what the individual makes of it.

“If you just go to your classes and your daily routine without ever getting to know where you’re going to, what was your point in spending the money to come here?” Gill said. “You chose to come to Northeastern, so come out and experience what the university has to offer.”