Campus clubs grow steadily.
By
Errol Evans
SUNY Buffalo State has a large assortment
of clubs that are constantly growing and attracting more members. Clubs provide
a way for students to get involved in something of interest to them and also
meet and interact with other students that share the same interest. There are
many steps taken to keep a club running successfully.
There are 65 official clubs on campus currently; some of these clubs include the Geology Club, Astronomy Club, Guitar
Club, AASO (African American student organization), BAM (Black Active Minds),
PASO (Pan African Student organization), FSA (Fashion Students Association) and
many more. There are numerous clubs and the number is still growing
every year. On the Buffalo State
College campus the clubs grow at a rate of about 3-5 clubs per year. The wide variety of clubs on campus help to
give everyone a better chance to find at least one they can find interest in.
The process of becoming a club is a long
one. To even begin this process you need to have a president, a vice
president, a treasurer, at least one facticity member from SUNY Buffalo State,
and ten members not including any of these positions. From there you need to go to the student
union and talk to someone from the fourth floor student life office. The person
looking to create a club will have to fill out a WUFOO form, which is to make
your club official. Every club has to be official to be recognized as a club on
campus. The process of becoming official, takes about a year. In this year, the
staff of student life is reviewing the request for the club and deciding to
provide the funding for the club. Each club is allowed funding in the amount in
which the creator of the club can decide. Every club needs funding, one
thousand dollars is minimum that you need to start up. This money is for any
type of things the club may need such as equipment, club clothing,
refreshments, events and things of that nature.
The largest and most successful club on the SUNY Buffalo
State campus is the African American Student Organization. The club was founded
in 1967, originally named the Afro-American Society. The club was created to build relations within the African
American community in Buffalo. The club currently has 95 members. Not
only does the club speak and discuss problems that African Americans face in
today’s world, but they also hold events on campus that are open to any of Buffalo
State students.
“We host annual fashion shows, a talent show based on the Apollo,
entitled "Apollo Night" and A pageant,” said Rashida Davaud, the
club’s secretary. These events are all put together by the members of AASO and
are usually some of the bigger/more popular events on campus. Davaud’s job is
to keep track of emails and informing any interested or potential members about
AASO and what exactly they do. When asked why AASO is the #1 club on campus Davaud
responded, “its just a bunch of people that feel passionate about the same
thing and use a club as a way to show it” The club prides itself in being the
voice for minority students on campus.
“Successful clubs always have a strong
base of people who feel strongly about the club and are willing to advertise to
others,” said Charlene Fontana, assistant to the director
of student life. Fontana believes that to have a successful club you not only
need as many members as possible, but members that are willing to try their
hardest to attract other people by informing them about AASO. This means having
people who are willing to sacrifice their time in order to make the club
expand.
Newer clubs on the SUNY
Buffalo State Campus can look at AASO and how they do things to possibly use
similar techniques to grow their club.
A club, such as the Buffalo
State Guitar Club (BSGS) is a smaller and newer club on campus. BSGS’s purpose
is to get musicians, who play the guitar, to get together and perform and
practice new and original pieces. The club hosts a few events each year to show
and gain interest in their music. The club currently has 18 members and doesn’t
have as much popularity as other clubs on campus. This may be because the
interest of playing guitars isn’t as high as other activities on campus. BSGS
could do more advertising for their club with activities that not only interest
current guitarist but possibly build interest in students who don’t play and
would like to learn.
“BSGS is just a fun time,
and if you truly enjoy playing its worth it,” said Rodney Cassel. Cassel is a
freshmen at SUNY Buffalo State, he’s new to BSGS but insists not only is the
club a load of fun but all the members are very close. Being a smaller club
everyone knows everyone and making and playing music together builds even more
chemistry. Even though the Guitar Club is a smaller club on campus, according
to the members this isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
There are many different
things that go into making a successful club. Every club has something
different that makes it successful. Even if a club doesn’t have a lot of
members doesn’t always mean the club isn’t successful.
As Michael Ong , Buffalo
State Senior and member of 11 clubs said “If you’re a part of a club it’s
already a success for you, because you’re involved in something you like”
Oliver Jones, new member of AASO
