Welcoming Students; Society Fair’s impact.
Written by: Leah Oake
Thumbnail Photo by Naassom Azevedo on Unsplash
Header Photo by Lokesh Masania on Unsplash
When arriving at university for the first time, people cannot help but feel out of place. It is a new stage in one’s life when you move forward academically, but more importantly, during this stage you get to grow as a person, and that can cause anxiety. How do you free your mind from anxious thoughts? Journaling, meditation, reading? Many new and returning students get involved! A way many students (new and returning) try to get out of the anxious rut they are inevitably sucked into is by getting involved. Saint Mary’s University is filled with societies for everyone; a society comprises people with like-minded interests, lifestyles or identities in a fun and connective environment. The easiest and most effective way societies reach people is through the Society Fair. This fair takes over the quad, where different booths are spread around with colourful signs and popular music to get everyone excited to look around. There is an apparent reason why societies continue to participate and put so much effort into this event. It is because it elicits excitement and is the main source of new members for these societies. In my personal experience, I spoke with and gained knowledge from a couple of societies around campus; I asked them how the society fair helped them perspectively. The societies I spoke to were The Debate Society, The Environmental Society, and the Psychology Society.
Each society had a lot to say; their primary purpose, goals, and how they can achieve it (or not) with the fair results. Saba Mozaffari, the Vice President of the Psychology Society, spoke with me about their techniques for engaging people to join,
“The executives offered candy upon sign up and highlighted the value in becoming a paid member, such as having access to our many events and helping us fund these experiences.”
Offering something as simple as candy has proven quite effective for many societies. It lets students know that some level of effort has been put in to entice them, making them yet again feel more welcomed and valued. Jacob Wisley, the Environmental Society president, added how the fair helped them:
“The society fair allowed us to be seen once again.”
Even though COVID-19 is considered to be ‘over’ in terms of mandates and restrictions, societies are still rebuilding. Many societies haven’t had the opportunity to put on events and gain new members in years. This is the first ‘normal’ year for societies and everyone. Many former executives have all graduated, so this is the first year there’s been a purely new and fresh staff. This can be scary for newcomers now leading these societies who haven’t had anyone to learn from. Still, the society fair is undoubtedly a great way to feel comfortable in these newly appointed positions.
These societies, in addition, have many goals that this fair further helped solidify; for example, Kanav Sharma, the Vice President of the Debate Society, spoke about their plans for things like tournaments, ones confined to SMU but some national ones!
“We are hosting the Canadian Parliamentary Nations towards the end of the winter semester, this is a huge deal for us, considering that the national tournaments are usually hosted by bigger and or central universities. Being able to host these tournaments, we are essentially putting SMU on the map.”
Events like tournaments for the Debate Society help to motivate pre-existing and new societies to further their ‘school spirit’ active involvement. Goals aren’t always physical events; some goals mentioned were a change in mindset. Jacob Wisley iterated how ambitious his specific society is to make environmentalism inclusive for everyone at Saint Mary’s.
“ Our society’s biggest goal this year was to help other students and societies realize that environmentalism exists in all departments.”
Many students think that specialty societies (psychology, environmental, chemistry, etc.) are only for students of the specialty, and they aren’t! For example, psychology is about, in the simplest of terms, the human brain and how it works, and everyone at Saint Mary’s has a human brain! The Psychology Society has done yoga classes, board game nights, and group study sessions, all things to help anyone feel at ease. The Debate Society works to make people feel confident in their voice and take a step out of their comfort zones, by taking part in local and national tournaments. In addition the Environmental Society strives to put ideas of environmentalism out there, as it is an issue every person has to face, and joining that society is a step you can take to help the climate crisis right here at Saint Mary’s; education is power!
Being able to walk into something as simple as a society fair and being able to turn your empty scheduled week into a super busy and fun week is one of the greatest things about the involvement of Saint Mary’s. Each of the societies mentioned got dozens of new members and felt like they were each helping to make Saint Mary’s a more diverse and welcoming place. That is what is so great about the Society Fair; not only does it help students find where they can be a part of something, but it also helps societies accomplish goals and make memories for themselves and newcomers. All of us are part of a giant floating orb; it’s okay to feel lost sometimes. However, once you explore someone else’s world and engage with it, you make the best of your university experience.