At Binghamton University’s 25th annual University Fest, expect to see students soaring through the air on a 20-foot stunt jump and racing one another in Zorb bubble balls while exploring a variety of groups, organizations and activities.
Created in 1993 to welcome students back to campus for the new academic year, the annual event allows incoming and returning students to enjoy a variety of attractions and sign up for University clubs. This year, it will be held on Aug. 25 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the Peace Quad.
According to Jennifer Keegin, associate director for campus activities, there will be 250 student organizations, 30 academic departments and about 30 local vendors tabling at this year’s University Fest. Attractions will include a ferris wheel, carousel, sidewinder, Zorb Ball track and a Hollywood-style stunt jump.
Students can also enter a raffle to win free parking for a semester in the parking garage, a Nintendo Switch, fall concert tickets and Beats headphones. Keegin wrote that students can earn additional raffle tickets by donating personal hygiene items or canned goods to the Off Campus College table, which benefits the Food Pantry.
Nevertheless, for many students, the main appeal of University Fest is the opportunity to become a member of one of BU’s student groups. Kimberly Henry, president of Mock Trial Club and a senior majoring in environmental studies, wrote in an email that the event is particularly helpful in exposing students to clubs they wouldn’t assume they would be interested in or know existed.
“That’s what I like about [University Fest], because that’s really your time to see clubs you weren’t intending to see,” Henry wrote. “I’m hoping at our table this year we can entice people that have near heard of mock trial to join because it’s a fun, challenging and rewarding club.”
According to Lydia Westergaard, co-president of Club Softball and a senior majoring in accounting, clubs tend to see lots of sign-ups at University Fest, but numbers tend to dwindle as the semester continues.
“We have a good number of sign-up[s], usually over 100,” Westergaard wrote in an email. “Most student[s] follow through for the first few weeks but then it dies down to the more consistent members and those who are more committed.”
For students attending the event for the first time, Keegin wrote that it is important to pace yourself.
“University Fest is big and there’s a lot to see,” Keegin wrote. “Take your time and maybe breeze through it once, then go back and spend some time looking at the clubs and organizations that may interest you. You don’t have to make commitments immediately, you can just get a sense of what’s out there and then do your research and connect with groups through B-Engaged or attend [general interest meetings] as the semester begins.”