Campus Life Night will feature 300+ opportunities for students to connect

by Clémence Daniere, student writer

Grand Valley is home to more than 400 student organizations, with more being approved every semester. The organizations range from niche hobbies and interests to professional groups to sports teams, catering to the interests of most students. 

Club 13, a Taylor Swift fan club, has gained traction and garnered the attention of a lot of students on campus. Club 13 is the only organization on campus that is dedicated to a specific celebrity; it was founded just under a year ago. 

Caleb White, the club’s president, had the idea for this organization. He said after posting the idea to a Facebook page, he received more than 80 replies from other students letting him know that they would be interested in participating. The club meets every Thursday. 

During their meetings, the members chat about Swift, play games or song trivia, and foster relationships with each other over a common interest. Building a relationship with others in one’s community is a main goal of every club on campus, he said. It brings people together who otherwise might have never met each other. 

“It’s been a lot of fun and coming up with different ways to approach her music and approach a discussion about it has been really fun,” said White. “I’m excited to see what the Winter semester will bring because we’ve done a lot so far and it’ll be fun to see where we can go with it next.”

Other student organizations, like Alternative Breaks, are more purpose driven and aim to achieve a common goal through the organization. 

Alternative Breaks sends GVSU students all over the country to help out with the environmental and social issues of their choosing. Partnerships have been created and fostered over 31 years, allowing students to help out communities in need. 

“We support a lot of communities and we make sure our members get to choose the cause that they are passionate about,” said Hannah Scopas, president of Alternative Breaks. 

Forming a student organization at GVSU is a fairly simple process and the Office of Student Life is a helpful tool for students to get started. Bri Slager, assistant director of student organizations, guides students through the process and helps them gather all of the information needed to successfully create their organization.

“We have the philosophy in Student Life that if a student wants to have an organization here we will do whatever we can to make that possible,” said Slager. “I always say, 'I don’t deny, I modify.'”

In order to be considered for review, a student organization must have five executive board members and a completed constitution of their goals and rules. Interest meetings can also be held to gauge the interest level of the student population. 

The Office of Student Life will host Campus Life Night on Friday, January 13. More than 300 student organizations, departments and local businesses will be represented.