It was an eventful year for various student groups on campus from philanthropic fundraisers, to inspiring conferences, to the ultimate dazzling culture nights, it’s no doubt this was a great year for student groups hosting various events all throughout the year. For many, it was an opportunity to welcome students and for others it was a chance to give back to the community.
For one particular group, this year was an opportunity for bringing ideas and events to campus. Kultura Pilipinas worked hard this year to put together various events and educate students about the group’s mission. One particular event that Kultura Pilipinas was very fond of was its Spaghetti Dinner Feed last fall. Kultura Pilipinas created this event to fundraise for Typhoon Haiyan and collect relief funds to support those affected by it.
The second biggest event of the year for Kultura Pilipinas was the Pilipino Culture Night this spring that took form as a game show “Laro Tayo, let’s play!” This event included authentic Pilipino cuisine, comedic skits, games and a performance by JR Aquino, contestant from “The Voice.” It was a year to remember, and Kultura Pilipinas looks forward to next year and becoming bigger and better.
“Our culture night was a success. We exceeded our expectations,” 2014-15 Kultura Pilipinas co-director Luis Palomar said. “It ran smoothly and I would definitely say that culture night was my favorite event this year. I was the MC for both culture night and the spaghetti dinner, and I had a lot of fun.”
Like all groups, making an impression on campus is a huge deal, especially if the student group is new. This year, one new group was able to bring students together with its various events. The Students Activities and Resource Center was able to create new traditions and hopes to continue them in the following years.
SARC was able to offer students Ducks After Dark, partner with PitCrew on the Matthew Knight Classic basketball tournament, homecoming in the fall, Mallard Madness and the spring carnival. SARC had a lot planned this year and with a couple delays due to the move in Mac Court, SARC still worked around those issues and have successful events.
“This year went really well, we had some great events and made a lot of students happy,” SARC coordinator Mandy Chong said. “The spring carnival was the first carnival on campus and it turned out to be more popular than we thought. We anticipated it to be a big event and got double of the participation we expected. We will continue to support all the events we were part of and hope to make long lasting traditions.”
It was a busy year for MEChA, the Chicano Student Union, accomplishing various events this year such as Dia de Los Muertos, Ganas, middle school tutor program and the Raza Unida Youth Conference, a high school conference that brings students from across Oregon to campus and hosts various workshops.
“My favorite event was Dia de los Muertos last November,” MEChA co-director Ricky Salinas said. “I remember feeling intimidated when I was about to step on stage and someone said there was over 400 attendees.”