LBCC Club Day, a traditionally on-campus event, was once again held online for the second year in a row as a result of the pandemic.
From September 9 to 10, the event consisted of a two hour slot per day, meant to encourage people to sign up for clubs on the LBCC Campus Labs site.
The experience was a lonely one, with no sales pitches or friendly faces; sign-ups consisted of a lone ‘join’ button and a club blurb.
This is a stark difference from Club Days of the past, which have been characteristically loud and spirited outdoor events full of samples, performers, and public speaking to encourage students to mingle and join campus organizations.
This impersonal online experience highlights the kinds of changes student organizations have had to face during the pandemic, including difficulties with meeting, recruiting members, or coordinating activities at all.
“We used to have between 20 to 30 members, easily,” said Damon Skinner of the Metal Fabrication and Welding Club. “Right now we have no idea how many members we still have since March 2020 because our online tools don’t say who’s graduated already.”
The crux of the issue, according to Skinner, is that the activity his club is inherently about is incompatible with an online only presence.
“We haven’t been allowed to meet in person until this Fall. … Our club meets so we can build things, so no one will show up to talk (online) if we can’t build,” said Skinner.
It’s easy to imagine the many similar circumstances other clubs and organizations may find themselves in.
The online tools, like the lone ‘join’ button we saw this Club Day are also not helping initiate interaction. The Dance Club has opted to hold video performance auditions, and culture clubs might be able to stream content as a group and hold online discussions.
But, for clubs that necessitate the use of campus labs or resources, there is not much that can be done.
As a result, these club members might feel socially isolated, or that their hobbies or professional development have stagnated. Many new students in general might not even be aware that clubs and organizations exist, and may be losing out on important resources and opportunities.
Many clubs have also seen all time lows in participation, or lost important members that could help with club promotion and outreach. In fact, when Viking reporters reached out to various clubs, we had only a 23% success rate; that means we were unable to successfully contact 77% of the organizations we reached out to.
All of this is pretty unfortunate when we look at how student-led campus organizations are a cornerstone of community development, and present opportunities to develop skills and network.
They are vital to the social and emotional health of the student population; disruptions to the way clubs can organize or operate might stagnate personal growth and contribute to growing mental health concerns.
However, some clubs appear to have been better equipped to deal with going fully online than others. For example, the Horticulture and Carpentry clubs might come across more difficulties than a language or coding club when it comes to organizing online activities.
The LBCC Active Minds club, for one, has had a smooth transition into the ‘zoom-space’.
“Our members have been pretty steady,” said Camesha Maxwell, the Interim-President of the Active Minds club, in regards to membership and attendance.
Active Minds is a student led organization committed to destigmatizing conversations about mental health, and providing mental health resources both on and off campus.
Although they are mental health advocates, not clinicians, they have continued to keep in-touch online on a bi-weekly basis, providing a safe space for members of both the club and community to connect and process their experiences during the pandemic.
“It would not be hard to find us; we are the only club on campus geared towards mental health and suicide prevention.” Maxwell said. “And it helps that we are alphabetically the second name on the list, since Active Minds starts with the letter ‘A’ as in Apple.”
As a result the club continues to thrive despite only being founded two years ago. Club advisor Sergio Grimaldi said they usually number a steady 8 to 10 students, and that has not changed during the pandemic.
Operating virtually has also brought Active Minds members many new educational opportunities, as well as allowed them to share resources with the Office of Student Life.
Some silver linings have included special Suicide Prevention presentations from Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services and a a Mental Health First Aid Training Certification with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), all free of charge.
These experiences serve as a comfort, as Active Minds, like most clubs, will continue to have the remainder of their sessions this semester on Zoom.
Still, not all hope is lost for the more technical clubs, like the Metal Fabrication and Welding Club.
“We did have two people join using the online tool, and we just had someone email expressing interest.” Skinner said regarding this year’s Club Day recruitment. He hopes that as more people start filtering back to campus, and local communities re-open, there might be a chance they can get back to regular activities.
“I would like to see us get back to everything pre-pandemic, minus the masks,” Skinner said.