Club fair not without critique

author: kristian ferguson | news editor

so many clubs credit jaecy bells

Event’s success debated

Every year during Welcome Week, the University of Regina Students’ Union [URSU] helps facilitate a club fair to get new and returning students interested in their school environment.

With a whole variety of clubs on campus including, but not limited to, the Women’s Action Group, the Queen City Chess Club, the Anime Club, various sports clubs and so on, it is hard for many students to not find something to be interested in.

Similarly, URSU held another club fair on Sept. 18 in order to help promote awareness and a better campus experience.

“Head to the RIC Atrium to visit with our awesome student clubs,” states the URSU Facebook page.

The post then promotes a new service that URSU has been using, Campus Vibe, which is designed to track club memberships, sign up for new clubs, as well as broadcast events your club might be holding.

In comparison to previous years, this is a major technological leap. Clubs were typically more familiar with the older method of sign up sheets.

Queen City Chess Club president Tom Boshoff was able to talk with the Carillon about the club fair.

“The club fair was fun, and we saw a few new faces show up to our club afterwards. In past years, we always used this event to become ratified and boost membership,” says Boshoff.

“This year, with the initiation of Campus Vibe, we found it much more difficult to be ratified. Many people are willing to sign a form, few are willing to spend 10 minutes creating an account online.”

The fair wasn’t completely negative for Boshoff, however.

“I love the club fair. It’s a great way to introduce students to the opportunities available on campus. I look forward to this event every year,” says Boshoff. “However, I would like to express my frustration to the increased barriers URSU has placed on gaining funding for campus clubs.”

Rita Panapasa, one of the founding members of the Women’s Action Group, commented on the campus fair, this one being the group’s first.

“I think it’s a great way not only promote your group, yet also a chance to showcase what the university has to offer, in terms of activities, interests, and passions outside of studying,” said Panapasa.

When asked about how the club fair affected their membership, Panapasa was positive.

“We had a lot of people sign up for our newsletters and a lot of support from fellow students.”

However good the experience was, Panapasa still had some critiques on the club fair.

“I’d probably like to add more events around the club fair. It’s held during Welcome Week, and I think if there was more entertainment and activities that encourage students to be involved in university life, would probably make a freshman feel included.”

While the club fair is generally a hit with both new and returning students, some of the clubs would like to see some quality-of-life changes whether that is on Campus Vibe, funding, or increased awareness.