Student t-shirt of the year giveaway returns to MainStage

It’s t-shirt time!

One of the most popular draws of Central Michigan University’s MainStage is back. For the fourth straight year, the first major event of the fall will feature the student t-shirt of the year as a limited giveaway.

“There’s an exclusivity behind it,” said Noah Burks, assistant director of student activities and marketing. “You want to be one of the first 500 people to get there to get one - the hype is real.”

Each year, Student Activities and Involvement holds a design contest for the upcoming academic year’s t-shirt. Students submit their designs, which are then voted on by the student body. The winning design for 2025-2026 was a joint effort between Clare senior Kathlyn Allmacher and Hadlee Rinn, SAI’s former coordinator of student activities.'

“We wanted to showcase the feeling of CMU being like home,” Allmacher said. “It’s such a small campus, but it’s also big enough to be like a tour with all the different buildings.”

The good news for those unable to secure a shirt at MainStage, or alums feeling nostalgic and hoping to get one for themselves: SAI has partnered with the CMU Bookstore to sell the shirt in-store and online with proceeds benefiting the Student Food Pantry.

“A little bit goes a long way in terms of the Student Food Pantry,” Burks said. “Anything that can assist and help them out, we want to contribute to that.”

MainStage 2025 is Sunday, August 24, from 4-7 p.m. on Franklin Street in front of Finch Fieldhouse. The student t-shirt of the year will be available at the CMU Bookstore this fall.