Sue Small-Kreider
In Motion Staff Writer
With more than 50 clubs active at five of the six Daytona State College campus, students have a variety of opportunities for acquiring leadership, planning and social skills that are important for success, as well as having fun.
“Clubs are a learning opportunity for students to gain skills not found in the classroom, but very valuable in the work place,” said Bruce Cook, Director of Student Life.
How to manage a project, seeing a project through to completion, working through conflict within a group and networking with diverse populations are skills that Cook and his co-worker, Lori Lemoine, Coordinator of Student Life Activities, said students gain by being involved in clubs.
President of the Business Club Augusta Thomas said that the interaction with faculty on projects has brought opportunities to past Business Club officers, including name recognition and recommendations for awards and scholarships.
But that’s old news. According to a 1984 National Institute of Education study, students learn proportionally in relation to their engagement with the subject. So, by being active in a club related to a student’s degree program, that the student should learn more about that subject.
The Science Club, which has been the most active club on the main campus for two years in a row, has helped to start new clubs like WISE – Women in Science and Engineering, Environmental Outreach and Pre-Health. Chem Life is another of the science-related clubs. Like the Business Club, the Science Club is open to everyone. In fact, only a few clubs, such as PTK and the Dual-Enrolled Student Club, have membership requirements.
“Very committed students, club officers and department faculty are what makes the Science Club successful,” said Jennifer Bell, Assistant Professor School of Biological and Physical Science and Science Club Adviser.
Many clubs offer opportunities to hear talks on their field of study, either with guest speakers coming to campus or club members traveling to off-campus local meetings or national conferences.
Clubs are encouraged to have a service aspect to their club life by hosting tables and assisting with set-up and clean-up at festivals and celebrations at each of the campuses. Collecting food and supplies for those in need, participating in a charity’s walk/run fundraisers, and volunteering at local charities are other ways clubs can serve.
The Studio Rats Art Club help with setting up art exhibitions around campus. The Veterans Club plan the Veterans’ Day celebrations on each of DSC’s campuses. The American Sign Language Club hosts dinners and coffee chats for both students and members of the sign language community to gather and talk. The WISE club helped with the planning and staffing of DSC booths at the weeklong STEMFest for K-12 students held at the Daytona Municipal Stadium. The Health Information Management Club participates in Wreaths Across America which places wreaths on the graves of veterans to remember and honor them.
Every year, most clubs collect food donations for the annual Basket Brigade event. This year, the clubs outdid themselves and provided 2,600 baskets of food to area families in need the Saturday before Thanksgiving, said Lemoine. The list of families is provided by the local police department and recipients can either come and pick up the groceries of have them delivered.
In addition, clubs provide the opportunity to socialize and to get to know the campus and community better. Honor societies — Phi Theta Kappa, Kappa Delta Pi, Alpha Delta Nu, Sigma Beta Delta and Sigma Kappa Delta —are both service and academically focused. Faith-based clubs give students an opportunity for fellowship and service. Athletic clubs include surfing, table tennis, dance and flag football.
New clubs get started each year when faculty or students see a need or an interest that they can gather around. The first step to starting a new club is to talk with the Student Life Director.
The Student Government Association is the liaison of the students to the college president and the board of trustees that govern the college. SGA is also the group that helps plan, publicize and implement many of the campus activities. Although representation for all six campuses is designated in the SGA bylaws, only the main, ATC and Flagger/Palm Coast campuses currently have active representatives. SGA’s vision is to increase student engagement, provide opportunities for personal growth and student fellowship while being conscious of the environment.
One way the SGA has encouraged fellowship was to hold a Club Thanksgiving dinner where clubs were thanked for their service during the fall semester. At the dinner an ice breaker game was played to get students talking with other students outside their own club groups.
Like all club activities, the idea is to get students talking to one another, learning from each other and, in general, just getting involved.