COVID-19 regulations have affected every aspect of Virginia Weselyan’s campus life. However students can still get involved with student clubs, activities and events. Clubs, sororities and fraternities are still meeting, just in different ways, while Off the Hook continues to host different socially distant events.
Clubs and Organizations
Even with COVID-19 regulations, clubs and organizations can still meet in a variety of ways. The three choices for meetings include in-person, socially distanced events on a first-come, first-serve basis, a hybrid event with both in-person and virtual components and completely virtual events.
Clubs, like any year, must register in order to be active. Once they have registered with Student Activities, the student leaders are trained on the COVID-19 expectations in order to comply with the university’s policy. Clubs and organizations can request rooms for events, however, this must be done two weeks in advance.
By requiring clubs to plan in advance and taking into account the university’s COVID-19 policy, organizations are taking more precautions and preaching safety standards.
Students can get involved in clubs and organizations by checking the Campus Events Calendar. Students can find active clubs soon on the Student Activities page on the Virginia Wesleyan website. Other ways to get involved is to check social media, in-person flyers and the This Week @ VWU email from the Student Activities office.
When getting involved with clubs, pay close attention to student leader contact information and information about how the club will be meeting.
Events and Activities
Off the Hook is an organization of students who plan events for the Student Activities office on campus. The organization consists of Event Supervisors, whose job just got a lot more difficult this semester.
With social distancing regulations, Off the Hook continues to plan events for student involvement that comply with the university’s policy. Examples of events that comply include virtual events with comedians and other performers, virtual game shows with prizes and even some in-person and hybrid activities.
Off the Hook and the Student Activities office are also responsible for many traditions such as Mud Games and AirBand. These specific events are an annual parts of campus life at Virginia Wesleyan. In an interview with Sarah Guzzo, head of Student Activities on campus, she explained that these events will happen, but they will be different this year. The events will be “modified but alive,” Guzzo said.
Elaine Robbins, an event supervisor for Off The Hook, stated that planning events “is harder because you have to plan for event capacity, masks and social distancing.” Even though COVID-19 policies give the Off the Hook team much more to think about, they keep producing events for students to get involved in.
To get involved in Off the Hook’s events, students should check flyers posted around campus and the weekly This Week @ VWU email from the Student Activities office. Students can also check the Student Activities Calendar.
Greek Life
Virginia Wesleyan is home to nine different fraternities and sororities on campus. Greek Life has been a part of Virginia Wesleyan’s campus life since 1963 and has become a major tradition for students. Greek Life was also affected greatly by COVID-19 regulations, however events are still happening and will simply be a bit different this year.
In the next few weeks, students will be able to take part in recruitment events from all the different fraternities and sororities. Events that have already occurred include a virtual Disney Trivia Night hosted by Phi Sigma Sigma,and a Jack Box Party Night hosted by Sigma Nu.
Recruitment and Rush Week events are going to be different and possibly delayed as new requirements are introduced in order to comply with COVID-19 policies. Like any club or organization, student leaders are required to go through training and plan further in advance than normal.
“Events are slightly harder to do, but in saying that, we are working around the rules to make sure no one gets in trouble and we can still make an impact on campus,” Andrew Taylor, president of the Interfraternity Council, said.
To get involved in Greek Life, students should check their emails, the student activities calendar, flyers and posters around campus and most importantly, social media. Every single sorority and fraternity on campus has an Instagram page that students can follow to stay informed about upcoming events.
Lauren Faulkner
lafaulkner@vwu.edu
