By Alwyn Jimmy, Part-Time Writer
On Wednesday, Sep. 6, from 11:30 a.m to 1:30 p.m, students bustled through the involvement fair of Saint Vincent College (SVC), drawn in by a host of club-run tables in Melvin Platz. It’s the first real annual opportunity for students, especially freshmen, to get to know what kind of clubs and organizations are available on campus. There were a variety of clubs, ranging from equestrian to chemistry, and organizations such as VALT and Activities Programming Board (APB).
One of such clubs, drawing in crowds with dual TVs and gaming equipment at their table was the SVC E-Sports and Gaming Club. Chris Hopstetter, junior cybersecurity major and club president, helped run the table with fellow members.
“It’s all about community,” Hopstetter said regarding the objective of the club, which was founded in the fall of 2022.
Andrew Joyce, sophomore physics major and club vice-president, explained that there were different divisions of the club: casual gaming, competitive gaming and media.
The club will be holding on campus events once a month, which will include Mario-Kart and Super-Smash Bros tournaments. According to Hopstetter and Joyce, a primary goal is to get the club’s competitive side up and running. As a testament to this, on Friday, Sept. 8, the club made history as SVC made its first ever appearance in competitive e-sports.
Joyce emphasized that comradery and building new friendships are at the core of the club. “The biggest payoff is seeing our guys get chance to do what they want to do,” he said.
With aspirations to involve other clubs, plans for regular livestreaming, and a range of upcoming events, the SVC e-sports and gaming club is aiming for a big year.
Another club on campus making its second-year debut is the Rock Band Club. Dylan Slebodnik, senior history education major and club vice-president, kept the purpose of the club simple. “It’s all about creating live music on campus,” Slebodnik said. “[The goal is to] make a space for musicians to hang out and play music they’re passionate about.”
Slebodnik was clear on why he joined this club and what he hoped to achieve.
“Saint Vincent used to be known for its music scene… I jumped on the idea, because music is such an essential part of college. [I thought] if I could be a part of that it would make the whole experience worth it,” Slebodnik said.
He is looking forward to many future events, especially a music festival the club is planning this year.
Jacob Devlin, junior finance major, who is both a member of the club and a drummer of two bands, elaborated on Slebodnik’s desire and need for a rock band.
“It was something I felt was needed as a lot of bigger colleges have a music scene. It improves the sense of community, allows more people to gather around, enjoy music and have a good time,” Devlin said.
Another club advocating for a different type of community is Cooking Club. Margaret Perkins, junior psychology major, and club president as of last winter, was certain about what the club was looking to achieve this year.
“The biggest thing this year is getting into the social life at Saint Vincent, as we’re not really out there,” Perkins said.
This year, the club is looking to make a push to advertise itself more with plans to use social media and flyers to promote themselves.
When asked about the best things about the club, Perkins stressed the club’s ability to make food fresh. “You get to make things from scratch. We’re not about buying products and making it from frozen packages, we’re about making it from fresh and on a low budget,” Perkins said.
Overall, it is clear by the diverse selection of clubs and organizations present on campus, such as the E-Sports and Gaming Club, Rock Band Club, and Cooking Club, that students have many activities to choose from and look forward to.