Columbia Reinstates Marching Band in Time for Homecoming

Sarah Blesener for The New York Times

The Columbia University Marching Band, which the school had banned last month from performing at football games this season, was reinstated Friday after a flood of criticism from alumni band members.

The decision, after nearly two weeks of negotiations, will allow the band to bring their instruments to the university’s homecoming game against Penn on Saturday afternoon, though it will not be able to perform on the field because there was not enough time to prepare.

“Up until yesterday I didn’t think we were playing at homecoming and now we are,” said Cameron Danesh-Pajou, a senior chemical engineering student who is the band’s director.

The accord largely…