Student Leadership: How to Attract and Retain Student Activities Board Members
Without a doubt, one of the most challenging things you’ll encounter as a student activities board member is keeping other board members engaged. Sure, you’ve got lots of other responsibilities to consider, too. You have to plan activities that appeal to all of the student demographics on campus, including commuter students. You’ve got to design great events on a budget, and ensure that they go off with a bang. And, of course, you have to balance these and other tasks with your course work, your personal life, and maybe even a part-time job.
But that being said, it’s hard to overstate just how much consideration you need to give to the task of finding and retaining the right student leadership on your campus activities board. Without capable leaders, you’ll have a tough time planning and executing top quality events for the student body. You can’t do everything on your own, after all: you need help! And by attracting the right student leaders, you’ll have the assistance you need.
But how do you find and attract the best students when it comes to filling leadership roles on your activities board? And once you’ve managed to get them onboard, how do you keep them from drifting away over the course of the semester? We’ve got a few key tips that are sure to help. Keep reading to learn more.
Make Your Needs Known
First things first: when it comes to finding student leaders, it’s important to ensure that you’re letting students know what your needs are. It’s easy to complain that no one is stepping up to fill a leadership role — but are you really communicating to the student body that you’re looking for board members? How are you advertising available positions?
One of the best ways to get the word out and let students know what you’re looking for is by hosting an interest meeting. The beginning of the fall semester is an ideal time to do this, as students will be looking for new organizations to get involved with. If you wait until later in the year, you’ll likely find that most students have already committed to other groups and clubs — and you’ll be hard pressed to find students who have the time necessary to serve in a leadership role.
Be sure to advertise your interest meeting as thoroughly as possible. In fact, you should give as much attention to promoting this meeting as you would promoting your next campus event. The more students who show up, the higher the likelihood that you’ll find students to fill the roles you need. At the meeting, it’s important to clearly communicate what leadership roles are currently vacant.
Be Clear About Expectations
Don’t just stop with telling students what roles are currently vacant, though. You’ll have to go further than that. In addition, it’s essential that you let students know exactly what’s expected of the people filling each position on the board. It can also be helpful to give an estimate of how many hours per week (or month, or semester) students will need to be available to help.
By setting clear expectations ahead of time, you’re more likely to attract students who can actually make the time commitments necessary to follow through on the tasks associated with being a student activities board member.
Make It Fun and Engaging
Once you’ve attracted the right students to various leadership roles, another question arises. How do you keep these students interested and active throughout the semester?
Simply put, the key to retaining student leaders is to keep things fun and engaging. No one will want to show up to one board meeting after another if the meetings are a drag. Focus on the positives, and do your best to pump students up for upcoming events. After all, remember the reason you’re all doing this: because you love planning and executing on engaging, memorable campus events!
Of course, getting the right students on board from the get go is just one part of the picture. You also have to find entertainment for upcoming events, and that can be tough. Fortunately, ArtistHub is here to help! We make finding top notch entertainment for your next campus event easier than ever. When you sign up for an ArtistHub account, you’ll get access to our whole roster of musicians, comedians, speakers, and more. Browse our index, scope out reviews, and book directly through our website!
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