Graceland Tradition: “Screw Your Roommate”

What does “screw your roommate” mean? If you’re a current Graceland student or Graceland alumni, you probably already know what “screw your roommate” means, and you might even have some fond memories tied to the night. But in case you’re not familiar with the term, “screw your roommate” is essentially a blind date that you set up for your roommate or vice versa. There have been a number of dates that have been set up from this Graceland tradition, but one story sticks out among most of the date stories you’ll hear about the tradition: 

“It was mid February and it was my father’s 19th birthday. His roommate knew that he liked my mother but he was too shy and too reserved to go out there and talk to her. For his birthday present his roommate gave him money and said, ‘your date will meet you at the Coliseum, here’s money for the movie and pizza. Go have fun.’ They went to the movie on Friday and it went really well, so they went to a movie on Saturday night, and then they hung out all of Sunday and it just kind of progressed from there.”

That was a story told by current Graceland student Nicholas White about how his parents, 1984 Graceland graduates Laurie and Scott White, met. The college sweethearts have now been married for 30 years! Many dates have been facilitated as a result of the “screw your roommate” tradition, and it’s a Graceland tradition that has truly had an affect on a number of people’s lives.

Scott and Laurie White 

-Brandon McCaffrey, Cheville sophomore