Rockers in Paradise: South Dakota Mines Invites Community to Homecoming Festivities

School is back in session, but summer is not quite over at South Dakota Mines. The university invites community members to grab their sunglasses and come out for the 2026 Rocker Days, themed "Rockers in Paradise.” From painting downtown windows to whitewashing the iconic M, the university community is ready for its annual homecoming week filled with tradition and celebration.

Festivities begin Saturday with the cleanup of M Hill and the Rocker Days Carnival.

Included in this year’s celebration is the official ribbon-cutting ceremony of the Surbeck Center renovation and expansion on Thursday, Sept. 24, at 4 p.m. The more than $10 million project, designed to modernize the front door to campus and enhance the student experience beyond the classroom, was funded entirely through private donations as part of the Center for Alumni Relations and Advancement’s New Heights campaign.

Mines invites the community to join in showing its spirit for its hometown university throughout the week.

A full schedule is listed below. Media is invited to attend each event.

Schedule of Events – Rocker Days 2026

Sept. 19 – M Hill Cleanup – 9 a.m.

Sept. 19 – Rocker Days Carnival – 5 p.m., practice field

Sept. 20 – Hardrocker Soccer – 1 p.m., Dakota Fields

Sept. 20 – Paint the Town – 2 p.m., downtown Rapid City

Sept. 22 – Free Armadillo’s Ice Cream with Mines student ID (first 300, Mines students only), 4 p.m., Armadillo’s

Sept. 24 – Surbeck Center Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony, 4 p.m., Surbeck Center

Sept. 24 – Coronation, Bonfire and Pep Rally, 7:30 p.m., Beck Ballroom and O’Harra Stadium Parking Lot

Sept. 25 - M Day Picnic and Whitewashing of the M, noon, Hanson-Larsen Memorial Park

Sept. 25 – Soccer game vs. Colorado School of Mines – 3 p.m., Dakota Fields

Sept. 25 – Volleyball game vs. Black Hills State, 7 p.m., King Center

Sept. 25 – Lighting of the Dinosaur, dusk, Dinosaur Hill

Sept. 26 - Football game vs. New Mexico Highlands, 1 p.m., O’Harra Stadium

Sept. 26 - Frosh Run and Formation of the M, O’Harra Stadium, halftime of the homecoming game