Week
of Welcome recruits students
Organizations:
Week of Welcome exposes students to the
various clubs and organizations on campus
and provides an opportunity to join them.
By
Jamie Rowe
On-line Forty-Niner
The
Week of Welcome, organized by the Associated
Students Inc., brought campus organizations
ranging from sororities and fraternities
to ethnic, sporting, academic and religious
groups into the spotlight for new students
at Cal State Long Beach.
For
some groups this event draws the most interest
from new members.
"Fall
is usually our biggest time for generating
new membership," said Carol Lyon, the
Sailing Association's coach and faculty
advisor. "All three of the beginning
classes usually fill from people signing
up during the Week of Welcome."
Other
groups, like the National Society of Black
Engineers, see the event as a big investment
of time to gain new members to continue
the work of the ones who graduate, president,
Frank Johnson IV said. He explained
10 freshmen join, on average, as a result
of Week of Welome.
Some
groups barely benefit.
"Most
people think we're like the recruiters who
called them all the time in high school
or the ones who want to pull them out of
college," Annette R. Grand Pre from
the Army ROTC said. "We're an on campus
organization hoping to make officers and
help them graduate. It's hard to explain
that to people without getting to talk to
them directly."
Aside
from campus groups, resource centers let
students know they exist through their participation
in Week of Welcome. Joel Ramos, a CSULB
student who enjoys the lounge environment
of the center, explained they are always
looking for suggestions for events and volunteers.
The Career Resource Center wanted students
to know they are there to help them find
internships for any major and can even help
graduated students find jobs, according
to Thu Truong.
"It's
hard to make friends and I thought the clubs
might help me meet people," said Diana
Gilher, a first year student.
Lizette
Guzman agrees with Gilher. "I'm looking
for the college experience," she said.
"It's hard to talk to people in classes
and maybe joining Latino or Mexican groups
will help."
Cindy
Romanowski, a second year student, was interested
in looking into clubs that pertain to her
journalism major.
"I
want to join Public Relations Students'
Society of America or Society of Professional
Journalists and may a community service
sorority," she said. "I just want
something else on my résumé
other than just going to school, plus it's
all about the networking."
A
few students came to renew their memberships
in groups they had joined last year.
"I
was hoping to find a social club like martial
arts or dance or something but I signed
up for the Black Student Union again,"
said Anthony Irving, who is working on his
second semester here at CSULB. Louis Rocha
explained it was just easier to rejoin the
Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers
at Week of Welcome than to go to the office.
Overall,
the Week of Welcome helps facilitate meeting
people through clubs and organizations.
Some students wander through on the way
to class and some actively seek to find
somewhere to belong. The organizations expressed
a desire to increase membership and continue
their work.
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