Clarksville, TN – A year ago, David Locke, president of Austin Peay State University’s Interfraternity Council (IFC), decided to give up on haircuts. He stayed pretty faithful to his oath, getting only a few trim-ups in the last 12 months to keep things neat, and his dark mane now reaches almost to his shoulders.
Around noon on November 19th, Locke will sit in the middle of the APSU University Center Plaza and let a stylist with Sports Clips shear off all his hair.
Locke’s public haircut is part of an inaugural charity event at APSU, Govs Go Bald,hosted by the University’s IFC. Earlier this year, the St. Baldrick’s Foundation—an aid organization dedicated to finding cures for childhood cancer—contacted the North-American Interfraternity Conference (NIC) about getting colleges and universities involved in their efforts. The NIC then contacted APSU about hosting the first campus event.
“The NIC asked us if we wanted to be the very first to head up the event,” Locke said. “If it goes well, St. Baldrick’s and the NIC will use us as an example of how to start this up at other schools.”
From noon to 3:00pm on November 19th, several members of the APSU community will meet in the plaza to have their heads’ shaved. The participants had to raise money for the event, with this year’s goal set at $5,000. All money raised from Govs Go Bald will go toward childhood cancer research.
On November 20th, the once longhaired Locke will walk across campus with a bristly scalp and a button on his jacket that reads, “Ask me why I’m bald.”
“I’ll be an advocate, for sure, because people will ask, ‘Why are you shaving your head?’” he said. “And when someone see’s a whole bunch of fraternity men with their heads shaved, they will want to get involved next year.”
The event is hosted by the IFC, but all members of the campus community—both men and women—can raise money to have their heads’ shaved.
For more information, contact the APSU Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs at greeks@apsu.edu, or at 931.221.6570.
