Student position

A student position is a role or title held by a CTYer during a CTY session (and often the year leading up to it). Positions are often held by nomores, and they are usually passed on to onemores at the end of each session. Most student positions are site-specific, and some are even session-specific—even those nominally shared between sites, such as the Passionfruit Emperor, tend to be interpreted differently by the different sites.

Positions are student-maintained traditions, although site administrators sometimes take it upon themselves to impose changes or restrictions, e.g., the renaming of Jesus to The Muse at Lancaster second session in 2012.

History and purpose

The oldest student positions—including Lancaster second session's Duck, the oldest position at any site—arose as a result of a nomore passing down some item to a younger, still-eligible student, in order to fill some role (say, the part of the Jester when acting out American Pie), or to keep the spirit of something alive the following year (say, a love of Monty Python). Over time, the passing down of these items has become more established, and some of these physical objects (or relics) and their associated roles have become part of the fabric of tradition at their home sites.

Modern student positions, which include both these older mainstays as well as newly-conceived roles, are very diverse in nature, but most still carry a role or vague set of responsibilities for the holder, as well as a physical relic. Lancaster's Jester, for instance, has (and wears) its relics of a jester hat and coat, and continues to act out the part in American Pie at each Dance.

Over time, these positions and relics have accumulated substantial renown, with the oldest ones typically held in the highest regard. Positions are almost always handed down by their holder at the end of session, most frequently during a Passionfruit speech, to a student returning the next year (though there are some exceptions, like the Emperor for Lancaster second session, which is determined during each session). Receiving a position is felt by many to be both a privilege and an honor. Nowadays, positions, especially the older ones, are typically passed to students who are leaders on campus or respected by the community, and who help to preserve tradition or to embody some other important aspect of CTY and its culture. The extent to which holding a position entails responsibility and leadership has increased tremendously since the earliest positions were—perhaps unwittingly—introduced.

Student positions generally have some associated responsibility or role, and are typically distinct from other relics which do not have a particular purpose (though they may be strongly symbolic).

Creating new positions

Positions are, for the most part, very loosely defined things, and how real they are is a function of how much the student body acknowledges and respects them. The respect accorded to a position usually corresponds to how old that position is. The Lancaster second session Holder of the Duck, the most highly regarded position, has been around since the early 90s.

There is no official process for the creation of new positions, and it could be argued that "creating a new position" is an inherently flawed notion. Any student has the power to give a title and/or item to a willing recipient at the Passionfruit or outside of it, and declare that thing to be a position, regardless of others' approval. It is considered customary to obtain the blessing of recent position-holders, especially those of the more older and more esteemed positions (the Trinity, Pentinity, and Jester going back two years prior to the creation of the new position). However, the true test of whether a position has legitimacy is whether it gains the respect of the students and withstands the test of time.

Conventional wisdom might dictate that a new student position be created only with the support of a large group of students, or perhaps to fill a missing role recognized by the current holders of the oldest positions, but this wisdom is often disregarded. Due to the ease of creating new positions, as well as an overabundance of shameless egotism, many new ones spring up each year, most of which are ultimately lost. Some, but likely not all, of these defunct positions are documented alongside the surviving ones.

List of positions by site and session

Lancaster

See also: Other Lancaster Positions.

Lancaster, as one of the most tradition heavy sites, has the most positions of any site (and the greatest desire among its studentry to hold positions, which produces a great deal of shameless egotism). The two Lancaster sessions have some of the same positions, but each have several distinct to that session; the Jester, Quotebook, Blammo Gods, and Documentator are shared between sessions.

Over time, both sessions at Lancaster have converged upon a trio of positions known as the Holy Trinity, with that of first session modeled after second session's older instantiation (which has, in turn, become the Pentinity). The members of the Trinity hold some of the most well-respected positions for their session.

Trinity (Session 1)

See also: Trinity (Session 1).

While the Jester is not part of first session's Trinity, it is the oldest first session position, established in 1997, and predates second session's Jester. The first session Trinity also serves as its Passionfruit Emperors and Empresses, whereas second session's Emperor and Empress are separate.

Position	Year est.	Current holder
Father	2007	Keri McClelland
Son	2007	Mia Hotsuki
Holy Ghost	2007	Blythe Dineen

The relics of first session's Trinity are all Turkey Hill mugs, or grails.

Other first session positions

A list of all current first session position holders can be found here.

Position	Year est.	Relic	Role
Jester	1997	Jester hat, plaid jacket	Leads AI; is an outstanding, humorous person; plays the Jester in American Pie
Blammo God	< 2007	Stuffed yellow spoon (a.k.a., Gregory)	organizes Blammo games
Stripper	2004	Short, grey plaid skirt	leads the CTY Chant; organizes RHPS
Jack Flash	2008	Glowsticking chains	organizes glowstickers; plays Jack Flash in American Pie, leads Mr. Brightside
Quotebook	2008	Leatherbound notebook	documents notable quotes
Secret Keeper	2010	notebook	aids taxing positions (e.g. Jack Flash)
Lanyard Stack	2009	Old lanyards and name cards	collects lanyards for posterity
Coconuts	2010	coconuts	leads monk walk
Documentator	2014	camera strap	photographs and documents happenings
The Savage	2015	Pool-noodle and general savage-ness	Acts as a anti-jester (but with no hostility) and is generally savage. Represents courage and individuality, as well as standing up for oneself. Pentinity (Session 2) See also: Trinity (Session 2). The Lancaster second session Pentinity includes the two oldest student positions, the Holder of the Duck and the Jester (though the latter was borrowed from first session). Position Year est. Relic Current holder Holder of the Duck 1991 The Duck Samantha Pancoe Muse, formerly Jesus 1999 Duct tape staff Muskaan "Smiles" Garg Fiend, formerly Satan 2004 Unicorn staff Caroline Shea Jester 2001 Jester hat and coat Ethan Pan Duct Tape Suit Wearer 2002 Duct tape suit none (lost) Other second session positions A list of all current first session position holders can be found here Position Year est. Relic Role Emperor < 1998 none leads the Passionfruit; appointed during session Fruitopia bottle 2001 Bottle of Strawberry Passion Awareness Fruitopia courageously drinks very old liquid Blammo God < 2005 Stuffed yellow spoon, named Gregory organizes Blammo games Caution Tape Cape Wearer 2004 Caution Tape Cape held by a onemore Lorekeeper 2005 Duct tape bathrobe and danger tape records traditions; watermelon Head Monk 2005 Mr. Jones, duct tape parrot leads the Monk Walk; organizes Monty Python Madness Documentator 2007 none takes pictures; takes more pictures; takes more pictures Duct Tape Dress Wearer 2007 Duct tape dress is an awesome person Squirrel of the Year 2007 Stuffed edamame (formerly For Squirrels CD) elects next Squirrel of the Year Quotebook 2008 A quotebook writes stuff down King James 2010 Shiny crown encourages glowsticking; widens rave circles Kiwi Backpack 2010 Navy backpack is a friend Carlisle As the original site of the Passionfruit, Carlisle also originates the position of the Passionfruit Emperor. The Emperors and/or Empresses at Carlisle are the primary student leaders, and the only major student position (although there are others). It is shared by both sessions. Session 1 Position Item Role Emperor Crown leads the Passionfruit(along with the Empress); appointed at the last Passionfruit Empress Tiara leads the Passionfruit (along with the Emperor); appointed at the last Passionfruit Poetry Goddess leads Poetry Night Jesus spreads tradition Session 2 Position Item Role Emperor Handmade duct-tape crown leads the Passionfruit(along with the Empress); appointed at the last Passionfruit Empress Handmade duct-tape crown leads the Passionfruit (along with the Emperor); appointed at the last Passionfruit Poetry Goddess Handmade duct-tape laurels leads Poetry Night; appointed at the last Poetry Night Court Jester Jester hat & My Immortal Binder leads My Immortal readings; appointed at the last reading Rave King Handmade duct-tape crown promotes raving; in recent years has lead talent show rave acts; appointed at the rave act of the final dance Saratoga Springs Though Skidmore boasts fewer student positions they are still very important to the logistical functioning of the camp. Besides each position having unique places in the Passionfruit circle, they all serve to better the campers experience by creating an atmosphere of unbounded inclusivity, absolute freedom, and eternal love. Royalty Position Role Emperor leads the Passionfruit(along with the Empress); appointed at the last Passionfruit Empress leads the Passionfruit (along with the Emperor); appointed at the last Passionfruit Second Emperor vital role that serves alongside the Emperor, the only main difference being his place in the Passionfruit circle. Second Empress vital role that serves alongside the Empress, the only main difference being her place in the Passionfruit circle.