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The Christian Student Organization welcomed many new members, as they highlighted their Bible study opportunities and supportive community. Image By Michael Matsushita
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The Leaders of Sustainable Future club hoped to give students a glimpse into their efforts to educate the student body on building a more sustainable community in Hawaiʻi. Image By Michael Matsushita
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Hui Koni's President, Treasurer, and Media Outreach Board Member encouraged students to learn more about Hawaiian culture at Club Carnival. Image By Michael Matsushita
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The Public Health Students' Association encouraged students to learn more about public health and healthy habits, as well as creating vision boards for the new year. Image By Michael Matsushita
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HPU Undergraduate Infrastructure Student Research Center (HUI SRC) spoke to Club Carnival attendees about their research goals and opportunities. Image By Michael Matsushita
HPU’s Club Carnival aims to highlight a variety of clubs and organizations offered to increase student engagement and help students find a community they can relate to. This edition, held on January 17 at Aloha Tower Marketplace, was one of HPU’s largest yet!
The Christian Student Organization (CSO) was one club in attendance, which saw many signups. After its return post-COVID, the club’s goal was to build a strong student base and let students know what organizations HPU offers. Katie Curtis, CSO’s Treasurer, mentioned, “We’ve had multiple people tell us that they didn't even know that Christian Student Organization was a club here even though we've been around for three semesters now. So, through Club Carnival, it's great to be able to sit down, meet people face to face, and get to know people that might be interested in the club.”
One of HPU’s newest clubs, the Queer Student Alliance (QSA), aims to build a community for queer students within the university. They want to provide a support system for students and align with the LGBTQIA+ community to increase inclusive representation among the student body. Sebastian Penate, QSA’s Outreach and Education Coordinator, discussed QSA’s exciting plans. “Overall, we just want to have a great time. We want to make sure that the queer community isn’t as stigmatized as before, and we hope to make a great impact on the greater world around us. Not only to create a place for students to feel included but to establish ourselves as an influential part of the student body.” QSA has a few upcoming events, such as trivia night and a partnership with Gay for Good and the Hawaii Food Bank, to package food for elderly communities on Oahu and Kauai; visit @HPU.QSA on Instagram for more information.
Hui Koni, or the Hawaiian Advocacy and Lei Making Club, wants to embrace Hawaiian culture and educate students, and the surrounding communities. “It's important that students know the history and culture and give back to the land, and that's why I wanted to start the club,” said Kaui Sato, the President and Founder of Hui Koni. Jonah Stokes, Treasurer for the club, also expressed his hope to make the club “an outlet for our younger brothers and sisters that are also staying home for their education, and this is their outlet of a way to still embrace their culture and Hawaiian identity.”
These clubs and many others saw quite a turnout this semester at Club Carnival. Not only was it a way to get students involved and connected with other members of the community, but it also served as an introduction to HPU Student Activity and Engagement team’s exciting new plans.
Tian Robinson, the Assistant Director of Student Engagement at HPU, oversees the RSOs or Registered Student Organizations. “Today's Club Carnival is a kind of welcome back to HPU for the Spring semester. We invite all our active RSOs and a few prospective RSOs who are not quite active yet just to set up a table, network with students, get signups for their clubs, and be able to share their ideas for the semester. We also are using this as a tie into our RSO week, which is the two weeks following Club Carnival. That's when all of the groups try to put on an event to invite students to. Kind of like a two-step process, but everyone's out there with the table right now, and the thought is that they'll have an audience to invite to their next events coming up the next two weeks.”
The Spring semester’s Club Carnival was undoubtedly a successful one. It is an exciting way to bring students together; this excitement is sure to continue into the semester with the upcoming Registered Student Organization week. So, keep an eye out for the many exciting events happening within each club and any new organizations that come about.
Students with an idea for an RSO they would like to start are invited to contact the Student Activities and Engagement staff at leadership@hpu.edu. The staff would love to hear students' ideas, provide students with information on getting RSOs started, and bring people together, strengthening the HPU community.
