At a time of transition in higher education, college students across the U.S. are decorating their graduation caps with a variety of artistic, personal, amusing, and political designs. A seemingly popular fad among millennials, the phenomenon has become a viral sensation. Informed by a critical interpretative framework, the article takes a closer look specifically at students of color and their mortarboards designs. Analysis of student-submitted images and reflections reveal their intentional approach to their designs, the elaboration of a communal definition of social mobility, and the framing of student life as political. As an example of what Willis (2000) would characterize as a "grounded aesthetic," the decorated caps provide a window into an emerging student visual culture that is changing norms and traditions in higher education as campuses become more racially and ethnically diverse. Implications for what the caps mean in the context of student resilience and racial justice on campus are also discussed.