For years Quincy University students have warned fellow classmates about walking under the kiosk on Penny Lane due to the myth of not graduating on time if you do so. Once you graduate you will be more than fine to walk under it any time.

This superstition has become one of QU’s most well-known stories among students. But one senior says that she is living proof that the myth does not hold up.

Alyssa Amaral, a graduating senior, walked under the Penny Lane kiosk early in her time at QU.

“There was one day I was walking, I was late for class so I just cut right through it and then a bunch of people actually started freaking out being like ‘oh my god you are not going to graduate on time,’ Amaral said. “Here I am, graduating on time though, so I do not believe in that for a second.”

Not only is Amaral set to graduate with her degree this fall, but she is also earning a spot on the dean’s list, and this reinforces her belief that the kiosk’s supposed curse is nothing more than campus legend.

The myth has been going around for a long time, often passed down from upperclassmen to incoming first-years as a fun tradition. This is a part of the introduction to the university’s traditions.

While some students still choose to avoid the kiosk and not take the risk, others, like Amaral, say the superstition adds character to campus life but shouldn’t be taken seriously.

Another senior Monica Shupe said she’s also walked under the kiosk, intentionally.

“It happened late at night after going out with friends, I thought it would be fun to run through it so I did. And clearly I’m still graduating, so I am not worried, never really was,” Shupe said.

Senior Morgan Schrock shared a similar experience to Amaral.

“I definitely walked under it once or maybe twice I don’t know but I wasn’t totally paying attention, my friend Marina kept telling me I was doomed, but guess what I am still walking at this December graduation,” Schrock said.

But Schrock has been nervous up to this point.

“I actually was nervous because I was worried all semester that I wouldn’t pass this specific class, but I managed it and can relax again,” Schrock said.

Whether students continue to walk around the kiosk or decide to challenge the myth themselves, one thing is clear: graduating from QU has a lot more to do with hard work than where you walk on Penny Lane.