By Justine Wilson
Staff Writer
Every year, the College kicks off its fall semester with a warm welcome and a bustling activities fair. Now known as the Student Involvement Fair, this event on Wednesday, Sept. 14, in the Recreation Center was the place to be for students looking to get more involved. The hundreds of organizations that the College has to offer are showcased with information, candy and smiling faces.
“I wanted to find out more about clubs on campus, and I really wanted to sign up for the acapella groups and to mingle with people,” said Brigitte Vuong, a sophomore accounting major.
From Greek life to TCNJ Musical Theatre, every organization had sign-up sheets for students to get more involved at the College.
Each club had plenty of representatives, including executive board members and general members, all eager to share information about their organization and collect signatures of eager students.
The fair offered something for everyone. Some groups are specific to certain interests, yet they are shared by so many at the College.
“What’s cool about our club is that we are the only organization on campus that has a niche not filled by our education on campus,” said Dom Portera, a senior interactive multimedia major, about a game design club at the College. “It’s to get your feet wet in game design and get portfolios ready for the industry.”
Many clubs offer more than just meetings by providing students with new experiences, something the Outdoors Club does.
“The whole point is to get off campus, and it’s cool to get out,” said Alex Cretella, a sophomore computer science major in the club. “We go on hikes, rock climbing and just enjoy nature.”
Other clubs are meant for students to get active or participate in an athletic activity that you can’t necessarily perform at the campus gym. Many of these clubs also offer a sense of community, where students can bond with teammates.
“(Mixed Martial Arts) MMA is like Fight Club, and the No. 1 rule is we don’t talk about Fight Club — except if there’s one thing you need to know, the club is super respectful and friendly,” said Jacob Johnson, a sophomore public health major.
Along with clubs to get students more active, there are others that allow students to focus on a greater world perspective, like She’s The First, which focuses on educating impoverished young women, and TCNJ Humanitarian Engineering.
Every year, new clubs come to campus through approval of Student Government. Some of those clubs, such as Physician’s Assistant Club and Tap Ensemble, were present at the fair and eager to recruit new members.
“We’re new on campus, but very excited to get involved and we’re welcoming new members,” said Katherine Brinski, Tap Ensemble’s president and a sophomore biology major. “You don’t need to know how to tap to come.”
Worlds truly collided at the Involvement Fair, as so many interests, from religion to music to brotherhood, came together.
