Students show NU pride with rings

The fall of junior year in the corps of cadets is a time of mixed emotions as students see their ring and begin to place their orders, according to Norwich students.

The class side of the ring is unveiled in the fall. The task of choosing what type of ring and how much to spend can be daunting.

The price has had a major impact on the choosing of rings for the juniors. The price of gold has increased dramatically since last year.

"I'm probably going to spend $3,200 on my ring," said Joel Rymer, a 19-year-old junior in the corps from Methuen, Mass., studying criminal justice who has finally decided on what ring he wants.

Rymer, admitting that it is a bit pricey, said he gave his ring a lot of thought. "It is going to be a symbol of what I've done and where I am at right now," he said. He approved of the design of the class side; "I liked the way it looked."

Another concern for juniors when considering the hefty price of the ring is whether they will wear it after senior year and outside of Norwich.

Rymer said, "I will most definitely be wearing it outside of Norwich. It's not going to be a random piece of jewelry. It's actually going to have some meaning to it because what I have gone through and my Norwich career."

Students must decide on the penny weight, type of stone, ring finish, whether to include bezel dividers, metal quality, and the sculptured palm side.

Meaghan Weppner, a 20-year-old criminal justice major from Buffalo, N.Y., also said she loved the ring. Her favorite part, she said, was the American flag as the eagle's wing.

Weppner knows exactly what type of ring she would like. "Blue topaz, yellow gold, satin finish diamond dividers," she stated.

Freshman year was the first time she saw the ring she would ultimately decide on. One of the cadets on her cadre staff had chosen this ring. She added that since blue is her favorite color, chosing blue topaz was an easy decision.

Other juniors, such as Joe Parini, 20, a studies of war and peace major from Granville, Ohio, do not like all aspects of the class side of the ring. Parini said he liked the ring a lot, but added, "The only thing I didn't like as much was the fact that we had another eagle, because now we have an eagle on both sides. Something else would have been nice."

Parini did like the compass rose on the class side, and similar to the rest of the juniors, he predicted that the price would be high. "I thought it was really expensive, but that's expected, especially with the price of gold going up," he said.

While some juniors are leaning towards getting the school colors on their ring, Parini said he "doesn't feel compelled" to get certain items such as diamonds or a certain stone. "I'll personalize it to what I like," he said, "As long as it looks good."

Matthew Marcella, a 20-year-old history major from Coventry, R.I., said, "I thought it was awesome. I love the fact they we have a diamond on the side of it."

He did not like all aspects of the ring, such as the ‘1, 2, 3, 4' on the bottom of the class side, or the Latin quote ‘Nixor Fortiter' (Strive Valiantly).

"I think (the Latin quote) could have been better" Marcella said.

Marcella decided on maroon and gold, Norwich school colors. "Overall, (I am) very pleased with the ring," he said.

To Rymer, one thing that stood out was the pricing of the stones. He said, "One thing that I did not like was how expensive my birthstone is." He admitted, "I have to go real" as a personal choice and said he is content with paying the price.

Jerome Chase, a 21-year-old business management major from Wayland, Mass., said, "They're expensive, but the price of gold is high." Chase said that he will be going with the Norwich icon, the 44-penny weight ring. "I'm going to get the biggest one for the garrison," Chase said. He has yet to decide on the type of stone he will use.

Matthew Blackman, a 20-year-old studies of war and peace major from Cherry Hill, N.J. said, "I believe Norwich should try and help out (with the payment for the ring)."

He said he believed the school should pay for a substantial portion of the ring because "we (students) already pay so much to come here," and as future graduates the students want to leave here with the Norwich icon.