Drone Show, Fireworks, Music, and More – Light the Fountain’s 10th Anniversary Provides a Night to Remember
Mar. 13, 2026
Michelle R. Eubanks , UNA, at meubanks@una.edu, 256.765.4392
FLORENCE, AL – In the 10 years since Light the Fountain was initiated as a spring-time tradition on the University of North Alabama campus, much has changed. The Fountain itself, an iconic and beloved part of Harrison Plaza, has even been rebuilt after its collapse in December of 2019. What has not changed, however, is the excitement and vibrant atmosphere that has come to characterize Alabama’s Best College Block Party® that’s also known as Light the Fountain.
A decade ago, UNA was around 7,000 in enrollment, hadn’t launched its first doctoral program, and was still thinking about dipping its toe into the NCAA Division I waters.
Today, though? Today is a completely different story – a different campus, one that is swelling with pride in its accomplishments with a bright star ahead in its fast-approaching Bicentennial – a harbinger of even greater things to come as Alabama’s first public four-year institution.
There is a visionary leader behind it all, however, and he and his family have lived and grown up at UNA right alongside all of this progress. Awakened in the wee hours of a March morning in his first week on the job, it was UNA President Dr. Ken Kitts who noted Harrison Fountain had come to light, and it was a moment of inspiration.
“I saw this amazing thing happen overnight, this transformation that, to me, felt like the difference between winter and spring, the transformation that brought the campus to life,” he said. “I realized then that this was a special moment that we could all – should all – celebrate. In that moment, Light the Fountain was born.”
And, since then, Light the Fountain has, indeed, lived up to its other name as Alabama’s Best College Block Party®, complete with fireworks display over Cramer Way, food trucks, live music, giveaways, and, for the first time, a drone show. It is, indeed, a party on an epic scale.
Because 2026 marked the 10th anniversary of the event, it makes sense that Light the Fountain would take on a little extra oomph, according to organizers, the chief of whom is Dr. Tammy Jacques, Associate Vice President for Student Affairs. It is Dr. Tammy, as she is known on and around UNA’s campus, who has helped bring President Kitts’ vision to life.
“This year, we did want to make the event a little bigger, a little bolder, and the drone show was a part of that,” she said in the days leading up to the event. “But so are the additional food trucks and photo booths, the addition of more places for our college students to interact with the community.”
And, also in the days leading up to March 12, Dr. Tammy had to make a big decision: move forward with potential rain or shift to the rain date.
“It’s always something we watch very closely at Light the Fountain,” she said. “We need the clear skies for the drone show and the fireworks but also, and most importantly, for the campus and community to join us in this wonderful celebration and tradition.”
Among the things that bring it all together is the individual tasked with flipping the switch to bring the campus back to life. This year, the honor went to City of Florence Mayor and UNA alum, Ron Tyler.
“My family and I love this tradition, and we would often attend just to be part of the celebration,” he said. “Now, having the opportunity to return to my alma mater for this very special opportunity is something I will treasure. It is truly an honor and a big part of how the City of Florence and UNA continue to have a close and important partnership.”
With Harrison Fountain once more alive for the season, UNA feels more like spring, more like the vibrant and vital place that it is – home to students preparing for their futures, student-athletes earning degrees while representing Athletics on the field, and a President who has been at the helm for 11 years now, as an innovator and leader.
About The University of North Alabama
The University of North Alabama is an accredited, comprehensive regional state university offering undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degree programs through the colleges of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering; the Sanders College of Business and Technology; the Spencer College of Education and Human Sciences; and the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions. Occupying a 130-acre campus in a residential section of Florence, Alabama, UNA is located within a four-city area that also includes Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia. UNA Athletics, a renowned collegiate athletics program with seven (7) Division II National Championships, is now a proud member of NCAA Division I as part of the Atlantic Sun and United Athletic conferences. The University of North Alabama is an equal opportunity institution and does not discriminate in the admission policy on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, disability, age, or national origin. For more: una.edu and una.edu/unaworks/.