About the Festival
The Tradition
Lebanon Valley College, like other colleges and universities around the country, has had its share of campus traditions. The campus is rich with traditions, from Hot Dog Frank to the Annual Murder to Dutchman Day, some of which live on today.
ValleyFest is one of those traditions. First held in 1971 as the Spring Arts Festival, this annual celebration brought together the Lebanon Valley community and filled the Annville campus with art and cultural exhibits. Attracting visitors from around the region, the festival sponsored local arts and craft vendors, exhibits such as the Juried Arts Show, theatrical and dance productions, local and regional music acts, food vendors, and numerous demonstrations.
The Spring Arts Festival continued in this environment until 2002 when the name of the annual festival weekend was changed to the Cherry Blossom Festival. The theme of the festival was changed to celebrate the beauty of the campus just in time for the cherry trees to bloom.
ValleyFest Begins: Fall 2004
Seeking to rekindle the College and community interaction that seemed to be missing from the festival weekend in recent years, students came together and changed the name and mission of the annual tradition to ValleyFest: A College and Community Festival.
Combining a carnival-like atmosphere complete with games, inflatable activities, food vendors, and bingo with the continued tradition of music, ValleyFest has brought national recording acts Emerson Drive, Reel Big Fish, and Everclear to the Lebanon Valley as part of our main-stage lineup. Acts such as Less Than Jake, The Starting Line, The Gin Blossoms, and Alexa Rae Joel, daughter of famed musician Billy Joel, have provided music as well.
Held during the end of April, ValleyFest has become the time when campus and community can join together to celebrate the return of spring.