How to Get Involved With Your Campus Activities Board
Let’s face it: college students are busy. Especially as a freshman, you’re faced with both the opportunity for a ton of freedom -- probably more than you’ve ever had before, especially compared with high school -- alongside the reality that you’ve got a lot on your plate. Between classes, homework, papers, and exams, your schedule can fill up fast.
Still, though, it’s important to find time to participate in at least one student organization. Working with an organization on campus is a great way to meet other students, build connections, and -- just as importantly -- have fun! Plus, adding a leadership role in a student organization to your resume is always helpful when it comes to finding a job after school. It shows future employers that you’re responsible, motivated, self-directed, and capable. When it comes down to it, this kind of experience is just as important in the eyes of some employers as your grades or the specifics of your degree.
While there are usually all sorts of different organizations on campus that you could join, getting involved with your student activities board is a great option. It gives you the opportunity to learn about contracts, event planning, teamwork, and more. You’ll conduct meetings, set goals, manage a budget, and work with a variety of different artists, performers, and speakers. Every month brings something new and exciting. Plus, your job as a student activities board member involves providing programming and entertainment for the student body. What better way to make a ton of new friends than being the person responsible for bringing an awesome band to campus?
So, how do you get involved with your campus activities board? It’s easier than you might think. Here are a few steps you can take to get started.
Attend a Student Activities Board Meeting
It might seem obvious, but one of the best ways to start when it comes to getting involved with your campus activities board is to simply attend a meeting.
If you’ve never attended the meeting of a campus organization, the prospect of going to your first meeting can be a little intimidating. Trust us, though: there’s nothing to worry about! Campus activities board members are busy people, and they’re always happy for new students to get involved and share the load of responsibilities. You don’t need to have any previous experience with event planning to participate -- all you need is an interest in student activities to get started.
When you show up for your first meeting, you might be a little unfamiliar with the proceedings. As the meeting goes on, though, you’ll probably be able to identify the various roles that individual students have within the organization. With this in mind, let’s take a look at some of the common leadership roles that tend to exist as a part of any student activities board.
Take On a Leadership Role
One of the best ways to really get involved with your campus activities board is to take on a leadership role. But what are those roles, exactly?The jobs and titles associated with student activities can change from school to school. That said, though, there are some general guidelines that most universities and colleges tend to follow. Leadership roles typically include:
- President: The buck stops with the student activities board president. Their job is to delegate tasks to various members of the activities board and oversee all of the programming on campus. They’ll typically work closely with a faculty advisor to the board in order to coordinate contracts and other logistics with performers and speakers.
- Vice President: Many student activities boards will have a vice president whose job it is to assist the president with their tasks. It’s also important to have a vice president in the event that the president is unavailable to fulfill their role. If and when this happens, the vice president will step in.
- Public Relations: Some student activities board will have a dedicated person in charge of PR. This person is in charge of all publicity related to upcoming events. They’ll issue press releases to the campus newspaper, manage the social media account, update the website, put up flyers, and generally get the word out about concerts, events, speakers, and so on.
- Treasurer: While it’s typically a faculty member who’s responsible for signing checks and consenting to budgetary decisions, some campus activities boards will have a treasurer who keeps track of the annual spending budget. This person’s job is to keep the board on track for the year, ensuring that they’re spending their money wisely and budgeting appropriately so that they don’t run out of funds before the end of the year.
Join a Committee
In addition to these and other leadership roles, most student activities boards are organized into committees.
A committee will typically oversee a particular task related to student activities. You might have a general programming committee, or a number of individual committees related to programming (such as a concert committee, an events committee, and so on). It’s also common to have a promotional committee that works with the public relations board member to help promote upcoming events.
Joining a committee is a great way to take on a more involved role with your student activities board, but without making the commitment associated with a leadership role.
Finding the Right Performers, Speakers, and Entertainers
Once you’re working with your student activities board, you’ll be faced with the task of finding entertainment for upcoming events. Traditionally, this was done through organizations like NACA. Now, though, there are other options available that are easier, faster, more affordable, and more fun for students.
ArtistHub connects student activities boards with talented speakers, musicians, entertainers, and more. You can browse our roster of performers, read reviews, and contact them directly through the site. Best of all, signing up is free! Click here to get started with ArtistHub now.
