by Nicoline Hansen
The first week of classes is over and it seems as though we made it through alive. Student Life tried to make the first week of classes go by smoother by hosting fun events each day of the week. Last Thursday, Aug. 22, the 2019 Fall Convocation was held and many students attended.
Many students participated in the event and showed great excitement for the various clubs and activities Parkland College has to offer. According to Josh Clark, Parkland’s Activities and Program Manager, who together with the rest of Student Life has planned this event, shared that this has been one of the best Fall Convocations he’s seen. “This year’s Convocation was successful. We had to move the event inside, it was planned for outside, but this created a much more festive, exciting event,” Clark said. “It was nice to see the Student Union so full and feel the energy and excitement.”
The Student Union was filled up with various tables represented by many of the student organizations at Parkland College. This gave new as well as returning students a great chance to discover an organization they might be interested in joining. However, the tables were not only represented by student organizations, but also by different departments at Parkland. “We had nearly 60 tables including student organizations, campus resources and offices, academic programs and SOAR sponsors,” Clark said. It was possible for the many students to enjoy a free lunch while discovering what Parkland College has to offer. In addition, the event was intended to give students a chance to forget about school, books and quizzes for a moment while playing some carnival games or tie dyeing with the Deans.
It was not only Student Life that stated that the event was successful. Many students who ran a table also agreed. Two of these students are Mohamed Achraf Belakhoua, who is majoring in Electrical Engineering, and Mikyla Steed, who is studying to become an Ultrasound Technician. Both Belakhoua, who ran the table for the Math Club and the International Student Association (ISA), and Steed, who ran the Queens table, had a very positive experience with the event. “My table did get a lot of attention though I started out worrying that no one would be interested,” Steed said. “I got up to 54 signatures and just knowing that created an amazing feeling.” Steed’s experience is an example of how new clubs can benefit from participating in events like the Fall Convocation. Belakhoua had a similar experience with about 23 people signing up for the Math Club and around 20 people signing up for ISA.
The success of the event showcases the desire and willingness the students have to get even more involved with Parkland apart from the classes. Belakhoua and Steed found the Fall Convocation an important event to host for this reason. “It’s really important to have those kinds of events at least two times a semester so students can get to know the Clubs,” Belakhoua said. “Clubs can benefit you and [you] really get something out of them. You can meet new people with the same interests.” Clark agrees with Belakhoua’s statement about Fall Convocation’s importance. “Fall Convocation is an important event because it showcases much of what Parkland has to offer students,” Clark said. “Students can find out about ways to get involved, … they can find resources for support, such as CAS or the Wesley Food Pantry, or they can discover new academic programs, such as the Aviation or Motorsports programs.”
Without events like the Fall Convocation, many students might not be aware of the large amount of student organizations. In addition, the Fall Convocation is a great way for students to learn about various resources of support that are available through Parkland College.
Overall, the event was held successfully even thought it had to be moved inside. Students as well as faculty expressed only positive feelings towards this year’s Fall Convocation.
