The Quad is the ideal place to relax and enjoy a sunny day, whether it be tossing Frisbees, chilling in a hammock, or just reading under a tree. A whopping 143 of Slippery Rock University’s student organizations took advantage of the space on Tuesday, Sept. 4 when they participated in this semester’s Involvement Fair.
The Office of Student Engagement and Leadership hosts the fair every semester on the second Tuesday of classes, either in the Quad or the Smith Student Center ballroom and theater. Student organizations sign up before the previous semester ends, and they get a table to house whatever tools or displays they may need to show off their organizations.
“It’s an opportunity for students in the organizations to showcase what they’re all about; to share their missions, purposes and values; to connect face-to-face with other students; and to offer the students of the SRU community to get involved and make connections with their peers,” said Courtney Mullins, graduate assistant for the Office of Student Engagement and Leadership.
While many groups decorated posters and tri-folds, others brought props and uniforms to really drive home what they were all about. For example, the Marching Pride table featured a jacket from one of the band uniforms and and the women’s ice hockey team presented their jerseys and sticks. Alongside the table displays, a number of organizations performed, like the JamRock and Illusions dance teams, and WSRU-FM radio provided their services by DJing the event.
“I love having relationships with these organizations because they’re helping me just as much as I’m helping them,” Mullins said.
Mullins completed her undergraduate degree at Penn State Dubois, where there were 26 student organizations and they all fit in a small cafeteria area.
“So, when I started as a graduate student here, the staff told me there were 200 organizations, and I almost fell over, I was like, ‘I don’t even know what that means, what do you do with that?'” she laughed. “It was a bit of a transition.”
The vast number of organizations at SRU may be a handful, and it may make the Quad a little chaotic on the second Tuesday of every semester, but Mullins loves her “baby,” and said she has a lot of pride in of all the students representing each organization, especially during the fair.
“It’s such a great opportunity for students to really connect with their peers and create a community around SRU,” Mullins proudly remarked.
Stay up to date with information about the next Involvement Fair, the 210-and-counting student organizations at SRU and other events hosted by the Office for Student Engagement and Leadership on CORE.
