 "Photo: Samantha Freese")
Using juggling acts, musical performances and free candy, many of the University of New Hampshire’s student organizations tried to get students’ attention at the University Picnic and Student Activities Fair on Tuesday. Along with students, local residents also participated with traditional fanfare despite university budget cuts.
While many students said their attention was focused on the various student organizations at the fair, they admitted that the free food, climbing wall, and musical performances by Toussaint Liberator and Buru Style also got their attention.
“I definitely wanted to check out the different activities and see if there’s anything I would want to do,” said UNH junior Amanda Brown. “Plus, I wanted ice cream.”
Monica Romanowski agreed that free food was the main draw to the event.
“ I go for the free food,” she said. “My friend actually got yelled at for taking soda when she tried to take 34 cans.”
The amount of food served by UNH Dining at the event is evidence that Romanowski was not the only student interested in a full stomach.
According to UNH Media Relations Director Erika Mantz, 5,200 ice creams, 3,000 veggie wraps, 7,500 hamburgers, and 4,200 hot dogs were served at the event.
At this year’s activities fair, local businesses were also given the opportunity to gain exposure.
According to Assistant Director of Presidential Events and Programs Patrice Russell, businesses were invited to the event as a way to raise money.
“Our budget was cut, so we needed to find a way to raise money in order to produce the quality of scope that is traditional for this event,” Russell said.
According to Russell, nine businesses registered for the event, and each paid $300 to reserve a table. The exhibitors were also prohibited from selling anything at the event.
“They are to provide information on how they are a resource to the students and campus community,” Russell said. “Highlighting resources available is a benefit [to the university]. It also helps build relationships with the community and local businesses.”
One business at the event was AT&T Wireless, whose display included models of their most popular phones.
“UNH and AT&T have a signed contract for discounts for student and faculty,” said AT&T employee Jason Barstow. “We are here to promote that as a way to help students and faculty save money.”
While Barstow admitted that any type of exposure would help his company’s sales, he said he hoped that the information provided would help students.
Still, many students did attend the event looking for a way to get involved.
According to Gulsun Cavusoglu, co-director of WildActs, UNH’s student-run social change theater group, the number of students primarily interested in the student organizations and those primarily interested in food seemed to be equal.
“I think it’s 50-50,” Cavusoglu said. “Some students hear music and smell food and want to know what’s going on. But there are also a lot of people who really want to get involved.”
For those students looking to get involved, there were over 100 student organizations at the activities fair, said Coordinator of Student Organizations Jessica Smestad.
For student organizations, the activities fair is an opportunity to inform students and the community of their purpose and gain much needed exposure.
According to UNH senior Laura Loy, president of Canterbury Club, one of the biggest challenges her organization faces when recruiting new members is the group’s name.
“People think we are a medieval club,” Loy said. “But we are actually an Episcopalian student organization.”
Loy said that the Student Activities Fair helps to overcome this challenge.
“We can actually talk to people about the organization and answer questions,” she said. “If we just published something about the group, people couldn’t ask us questions. And most people wouldn’t go out their way to ask.”
Another UNH student organization that benefited from exposure at the Student Activities Fair is Circle K, a community service organization dedicated to helping children.
According to Circle K secretary Teresa Ware, the group has recently had a lot of trouble recruiting new members.
“We have higher dues than most of the other student organizations because we have to pay the international Circle K organization,” Ware said.
Circle K treasurer Gina Aiello said that the price of dues is a deterrent to many potential new members.
“The dues turn a lot of people away,” Aiello said. “They want to do community service, but they don’t want to pay.”
The Student Activities Fair helped to overcome this problem by providing the organization with an opportunity to show students what the group is all about, Ware said.
“Just by people walking by, they notice the table and ask about the group,” said Ware. “15 people have signed up today.”
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