Voting now open as The Red Shirt campus tradition continues

Whether it’s Fifth Quarter after a football game, rubbing Lincoln’s foot for good luck, or singing “Varsity,” traditions are an important part of what it means to be a Badger.

Showing Badger spirit by wearing The Red Shirt is also a University of Wisconsin–Madison tradition. This year, alumni, students and the campus community will vote on the design for The Red Shirt, Fourth Edition, as the Wisconsin Alumni Association (WAA) celebrates its 150th anniversary.

The Red Shirt is WAA’s limited line of collectible T-shirts that help fund scholarships and programming for alumni and students. Voting for the next The Red Shirt design is now open here.

The first edition of The Red Shirt premiered in 2008, with a vintage 1946 image of Bucky Badger as the design. In 2009, The Red Shirt celebrated the 100th anniversary of the fight song “On Wisconsin!” with a design that featured the song lyrics. And in 2010, The Red Shirt sported Bucky’s full name, Buckingham U. Badger.

The Third Edition will be retired and join the First and Second Editions on the wall of fame when the brand-new Fourth Edition is released.

The final design will be revealed this summer and the Fourth Edition will be available for purchase in August.

Proceeds from sales of The Red Shirt benefit WAA’s pledge of $250,000 over five years to UW–Madison’s Great People Scholarship Campaign. These proceeds contribute to the more than $550,000 WAA already awards every year through scholarship programs at the corporate level and through alumni chapters around the world.