University of Louisiana students who want to participate in the Spring 2014 Ring Ceremony have until Feb. 26 to order official University Rings.

The ceremony is scheduled for Monday, April 14, in Angelle Hall. “The ring represents a lifelong attachment between the University’s graduates and their alma mater, and it’s designed to convey that,” said Matt Tarver, UL’s assistant director of brand management and creative services.

The University of Louisiana has adopted eight ring designs, five for women and three for men. The red stone represents the University’s primary color, which is vermilion. The ring features a fleur-de-lis, which the University has used since the 1920s to signify the region’s French heritage. Other imagery includes cypress and oak trees; the University’s seal; and Martin Hall, the main administrative building.

Inside each ring is the inscription “heart and hand,” the final words of the University’s alma mater. Official University rings are sold exclusively by Balfour. They can be ordered at balfour.com or purchased in University Bookstore on St. Mary Boulevard.

Rings also will be available at Grad Expo 2014, which will be held from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 26, at UL’s Alumni Center.

Grad Expo is open to seniors who will graduate this spring. One student will win a $200 discount on an official University ring through a drawing to be held at the conclusion of Grad Expo. Students who have accrued at least 90 credit hours can participate in the drawing.

To enter, a student must be photographed standing next to a large, inflatable ring on campus. That ring will be on Dupré Library’s wooden deck, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 24, and at the Alumni Center from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 26.

Entrants should post photos to https://www.facebook.com/ULLafayetteOfficialRing, using the hashtag #ULGradRing, and tag themselves in the photo.

Participants do not need to be present at Grad Expo to win.

For more information, email WearRed@louisiana.edu or (337) 482-6574

Louisiana.edu