Club Day Extravaganza
Breakdancing, Baked Goods, Popcorn, and More!
by Aaron Rogers (Procrastinator)
The red carpet was rolled out in the Agora on Wednesday to welcome students to the exhibition of John Abbott’s clubs and associations, otherwise known as Club Day. This year’s theme, as prescribed by SUJAC, was “Lights, Camera, Action!”
Each club was asked to set up a booth to display who they are, and what they do around campus. This resulted in an Agora full of signs, sign-up sheets, and a plethora of snacks used as currency to reel in students, and to get them to participate in a questionnaire or activity. The centermost booth, of course, was SUJAC, with bags of popcorn behind a cinema themed counter.
Club Day is meant to be an opportunity for the different student organizations to reach out to the student body by showcasing themselves rather than forcing initiative on students. However, being in the Agora can limit the “reaching” ability of the groups. Baked goods were the weapon of choice to entice potential members.
Although, some clubs were so magnetic that students flocked towards them, just because they allowed people to participate in the activity. Gamers were the prime example, with a television and N64. It admittedly takes a little imagination to participate in a club like Kayaking in this setting, and a lot of courage to participate in breakdancing in any setting. But a large number of students came forewards nonetheless.
After speaking with a few students, it became clear that no generalizations could really be made about what types of people visited on Club Day. Some students were already members of several clubs, others had no intention of joining and just came to check it out…and countless others came for the cupcakes.
I counted at least twenty different clubs in the Agora on Wednesday. Of course, I can’t mention them all, but the booths really showcased the sheer range of activities. GALA’s booth comprised of several desks, all covered in rainbow tablecloths with questionnaires and food, whereas the breakdancing club’s booth consisted of a desk with a signup sheet, a large floorspace, and CSKY’s loudspeakers. Both clubs saw a lot of attention that day.
At around two o’clock, near the back of the Agora, a circle of people formed up around a large open space. A pretty diverse group of dancers had somehow made their way to Club Day, and with a little catalyst from CSKY’s music, they started dancing in ways a suburban white kid like me could never imagine. I’m pretty sure this is what we’d call a throwdown.
The circle quickly became crowded as more and more people came to watch. I was lucky enough to have a decent video camera onhand to catch most of the performance. If you want to check it out, it’ll be on our Facebook page as soon as I edit out all of the useless footage I took. (It was my first time with the camera, okay?!)
These types of spontaneous events are one of the best reasons not to pass by the Agora without at least a quick glance on your next walk by.