Top Holiday Videos for 2012

Johns Hopkins University President Ron Daniels works with the university art department to create the perfect holiday greeting, while the College of William & Mary provides a fascinating tutorial on poinsettias grown in the campus greenhouse.  

Howard University celebrates the holidays to the tune of This Christmas, and the University of Virginia shares the annual Lighting of the Lawn in honor of the season.

Colleges are making creative use of YouTube and other internet resources for extending warm holiday greetings again this year. Some will give you an opportunity to see what the campus looks like during winter months, and others will introduce you to key administrative staff who just happen to play starring roles in the productions.

And the videos can be anything from earnest messages read by college presidents seated before brilliantly burning yule logs to humorous collages of campus and student life. 

After a thorough search through the internet and a little help from a few admissions offices, here are my candidates for the best of the 2012 holiday videos:

• Agnes Scott College.  Here are the holidays as seen from a “Scottie” perspective.  The dog is too adorable!
• Alfred University.  “Step back in time to get a brief but special glimpse into a bygone era when things were simpler, life moved at a slower pace, and maybe, just maybe, the snow was a little deeper.” Using very cool campus film clips from the 1930’s, this video is one of the best of the season.
• Carnegie Mellon University.  Students turn the College Career Center into one big snow globe and surprise a few people.
• Dartmouth College.  Catch the snow in Hanover, New Hampshire, through a collage of campus photos.
• Dean College.  Students join together for a fantastic flash mob and dance to “All I Want for Christmas” at Patriot Place in Foxboro, MA.
• Eckerd College.  President Eastman and Dean of Admission John Sullivan consider the science of the season in this adorable animated video.
• James Madison University.  One of the cleverer holiday videos, the “Carol of the Wilson Bells” puts a new spin on a familiar tune. “All will be told, Purple and Gold.”
• Juniata College.  President Tom Kepple considers various options for the annual holiday e-card and settles on the “purrfect” solution!  Gotta love the kittens.
• Lawrence University.  The Appleton campus is quiet this time of year but a recent snowfall transformed the campus and brought a little holiday magic. More bassoons!
• Liberty University.  Red Ryder & the Mistletoes perform an upbeat version of “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.”
• Pennsylvania State University.  The Nittany Lion spreads cheer and promotes the university with a new take on T’was the Night Before [New Year’s].
• Rice University.  The Rice owls bring holiday joy to the campus, and the animation is pretty neat!
• Sacred Heart University.  Big Red and Santa spend quality holiday time together.
• Union College.  An intense competition featuring familiar campus personalities produces the 2012 Union Idol.  “The only thing worse than your sweater is your singing.”
• University of Wisconsin.  In anticipation of the upcoming Rose Bowl, the Wisconsin Badgers chop down the Stanford Christmas tree.  This video is truly inspired!
• Wilson College.  This video puts viewers in the mood for the season with a snowy rendition of I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas.
• Yale University.  The Breaking Winds perform Bassoon Christmas Style in a holiday “mashup” featuring Leroy Anderson’s Sleigh Ride.  Don’t miss the whinny!