University of Chicago Scavenger Hunt

[3] "The Hunt" begins ceremoniously at midnight of the Wednesday preceding Mother's Day weekend, with an event known as "List Release.

"[4] The ceremony surrounding the unveiling of the list usually begins a few hours before midnight, as teams slowly assemble on the ground floor of Ida Noyes Hall.

These teams (ranging in size from 1 to over 250) then participate in what has been described as collective effervescence, as they chant various team-based and humorous slogans, eventually coalescing into a repeated "we want the list".

[5][6] Then, at midnight, the judges (members of the University of Chicago Scavenger Hunt Organizing Committee) run into the center of this gathering, and announce that year's list release challenge.

Previous examples have included the pages of the list buried under sand at a nearby beach, team captains kidnapped and forced to transcribe items onto their bodies with Sharpies, and copies of the list suspended from a wall six feet high ten feet away from a team representative, because "the floor is lava.

Each item is written, assigned a point value, and put onto the list by a panel of judges known as the University of Chicago Scavenger Hunt Organizing Committee.

These qualifying factors have been included in the list at the behest of UChicago's Center for Leadership and Involvement (the governing body for registered student organizations) since 2006.

[citation needed] Previously, this event took the form of a large party held on the main quads attended by scavenger hunt participants and nonparticipants alike.

ORCSA, the university administration body responsible for overseeing the Hunt, shut down the party due to intoxicated participants and alleged property damage.

[22] Items on the list include codes and cypher, large scale construction and engineering projects, performances, unusual sports, and difficult to acquire objects.

Scav Hunt was founded in 1987 by Chris Straus, who organized the list and judged items collected by other residents of Hitchcock house, with Cassie Scharff, Diane Kelly, Rick Jeffries, and Nolan McCarty.

[1][29][30] Perhaps the most notable item that has yet been completed was from the 1999 list; a breeder reactor in a shed was successfully built in front of Ida Noyes Hall.

On May 1, 2024, the eve of Scav 2024, they hosted a Meet the Founders panel, where Dr. Chris Straus, Cassie Scharff, Diane Kelly, Rick Jeffries, and Nolan McCarty talked about how it all began.

Judges begin compiling the list after the end of each Scav Hunt weekend, and continue to add items throughout the year.