By Jilian Geer
TAMPA, Fla. — The University of Tampa has unveiled a new campus tradition designed to boost school spirit and unite current, former, and future Spartans. The Spartan Shout, a call-and-response chant, and the “Shields Up” hand signal were developed as part of an initiative to create a recognizable trademark for the UTampa community.
The idea formed last summer when President Teresa Abi-Nader Dahlberg arrived on campus. After working to distinguish the school from other UTs by changing the nickname to UTampa, President Dahlberg then challenged the administration to develop a UTampa-specific chant and hand signal to boost school spirit and alumni engagement. Through a series of brainstorming sessions with students, faculty, staff, and trustees, a committee, which was comprised primarily of students, was formed to help finalize the new symbols.
The chant itself draws inspiration from a long-standing tradition with UTampa men’s and women’s sports teams, where a variation of the Spartan Shout has been used for years. Previously when team members finished a race, they would yell “Spartans!” and the rest of the team would respond, “A-ooo, A-ooo, A-ooo!” The university leaders and committee felt that this call-and-response partnered with the Shields Up hand signal could help to increase school spirit. The goal of the Spartan Shout and Shields Up hand signal goes beyond campus athletics.
“The goal of the Spartan Shout and ‘Shields Up’ hand signal is to increase school spirit and camaraderie amongst the entire UTampa community, including alumni and university friends,” said Eric Cardenas, UTampa’s assistant vice president for Communications and Public Affairs. “The committee envisions a scenario in which the shout and ‘Shields Up’ signal could be used as a greeting amongst Spartans — whether along a campus sidewalk or with someone wearing a UTampa hoodie at the airport.”
To introduce these new additions to the community, UTampa’s cheer squad has incorporated the Spartan Shout and Shields Up at basketball games. The athletics marketing department has also worked with student athletes and coaches to encourage participation, as seen on the @tampaspartans Instagram page.
Promotional materials, including flyers posted around campus and clips on the LED screens and Riseman Aquatic Center screen, aim to familiarize students with the new symbols. The cheer squad and mascot, Spartacus, have even performed the chant and hand signal around campus for students, faculty, and staff, including at the Student Government meeting on March 18.
Some students feel that this new initiative is a necessary step towards strengthening UTampa’s campus identity.
“I think it’s important because it instills a sense of Spartan pride within everyone,” said Abigail King, a senior majoring in international business and marketing and the Student Government president.
King, who attended early brainstorming meetings, hopes the chant will help address what she sees as a lack of school spirit on campus.
“If you go on campus and you ask students “what’s our school pride like,” most students are going to say that we don’t have school spirit or that it’s really lacking here,” said King. “So I think the Spartan Shout will work to improve that.”
While the Spartan Shout and Shields Up hand signals are in the early stages, other students are unaware of the new initiative and uncertain about its long-term impact.
“I have heard a little bit about the Spartan Shout in some of my classes but not enough to know what it even is,” said Abigail Grinnell, a senior majoring in advertising and public relations. “I think it might be helpful for school spirit but also implementing a hand signal when we are already an established environment might be difficult.”
Grinnell said that more involvement from athletics could help spread the word.
“I think students in Greek life aren’t informed about this new tradition, but it could be implemented since sororities have hand signals of their own,” said Grinnell.
As these new customs gain momentum across campus, university leaders hope that the Spartan Shout and the Shields Up will soon become a lasting symbol of UTampa’s identity. Just as other universities have well-known chants and hand signals, UTampa’s initiative aims to create that same sense of unity that extends beyond campus.
“Just like many other universities have well-known call and responses and hand signals, the Spartan Shout and ‘Shields Up’ hand signal will hopefully also be embraced by the community and will eventually be recognized nationally,” said Cardenas.
Graduating seniors for the 2025 spring semester can expect to see the new chant and hand signal take center stage at commencement. President Dahlberg is expected to lead the Spartan Shout and Shields Up hand signal during the May graduation ceremony, encouraging students to respond with a spirited “A-ooo, A-ooo, A-ooo!”
As the university works to solidify these new symbols, students and faculty are encouraged to participate, ensuring that the Spartan Shout and Spartan Shield become a lasting part of UTampa’s campus culture.
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Middle photo provided by @tampaspartans Instagram, flyers courtesy of Eric Cardenas.