By Lindsay Haislip
News Editor
Spirit and pride in Washington College is something that not only brings us together as a community, but also causes others to get excited and want to join in. In the past few years, WC’s Student Government Association and Student Events Board have been working hard to build a culture of spirit and excitement, but they need more help.
“OSA and SGA are really trying to work on changing the culture, but it’s important to remember that we can only do so much, and it really comes down to the fact that people really have to make an effort to get involved and support their school,” said SGA President Andrew Antonio.
Events such as Homecoming, the Tail Gate, and the creation of our very own mascot are helping to bring students together and build excitement about WC, “which is helping to create a new norm,” said Director of Student Activities Emmanuel Lalande.
“Homecoming will be the new norm for freshmen in the coming years. It will be normal to show pride without having a football team. All of these things have created a new norm that SGA and OSA have helped create,” Lalande said. “Pride here helps make school spirit what it is.”
Students who are now seniors have seen a shift in school spirit since they first stepped onto campus as freshmen.
“When I came here as a freshman, school spirit was terrible. People didn’t go to anything. SGA and SEB sponsored events would have a maximum of 20 people if we were lucky, whereas now we’re seeing people come out,” said Antonio.
Senior Christian Matthews shared a similar view, but still believes we have a long way to go.
“Attendance to school sponsored events is up, but that doesn’t equate to school spirit. We as a school need to stop acting too cool for school and show some pride,” he said.
This year, the SGA has taken a different approach to senate meetings by giving more ownership to senators and committees, rather than just Executive Board members. This greater responsibility for senators has already given way to many innovative ideas for building WC spirit.
The Marketing and PR Committee have developed a set of goals for the semester, most of which are centered on getting the word out about events and happenings on campus in order to build enthusiasm and support. They are using social media as a way to communicate the events that are happening.
“The big issue is not that people don’t want to go, it’s that they don’t know what’s going on,” said Antonio. “We think social media is a good way to communicate. It’s the wave of the future.”
With the development of an SGA twitter (GooseNation_SGA), an SGA Facebook Group (The Voice of Goose Nation), and a LinkedIn group (Washington College SGA), students have a greater opportunity to connect and stay informed through technology.
The Social Life Committee has also been hard at work developing ways to get students excited about being on campus and celebrating WC.
“One thing we’re doing to encourage school spirit is something called ‘WACy Wednesdays’ where every Wednesday throughout the semester we’re going to stop people that we see in the most WC gear, and hook them up with cash prizes,” said Secretary of Social Life Sally O’Donnell. “It’s going to happen every Wednesday for the rest of the school year. So you never know, you could get stopped on the street and given $50 just for wearing Washington College gear on Wednesday.”
A large part of what has made this year so successful thus far has been a result of the collaborative efforts of many organizations on campus.
“All the success that we have seen this past year would not have been possible without the collaboration between our organizations. That’s key to getting everyone involved and getting people excited. We want to see other clubs, organizations, and just students in general collaborate with one another and spread the message,” said Antonio.
“At the end of the day, nobody wants to be part of a school that’s mediocre; we want to be part of a school that’s
excited about its culture, history, and tradition, and that’s what we’re trying to build,” he said.