More than 160 campus organizations used fliers, candy and dancing to entice Northwestern students into their groups at the annual Activities Fair on Tuesday at Norris University Center.
Volunteers from Project Pumpkin, a group that puts together an annual Halloween carnival at Norris for elementary school students from Evanston, dressed in costume and adorned their table with a pink and purple stuffed-toy monster and a Jack-O-Lantern.
“We figured we’d attract a little more attention by making a spectacle of ourselves,” said Katy Schumaker, a Weinberg junior.
Down the hall, members of Niteskool, a music production group, gave away free CDs of music produced by NU students. Natural Ties, a group that fosters friendships between students and people with disabilities, promised potential members a pizza party at the first meeting, although organizers will have to foot the bill.
“It’s really tough because we have no budget and this is out of our own pockets,” said Ben Nathanson, a Communication senior, of the planned party. “The big push is to get a person to come to one event — if they come once, they’ll be sold on it.”
At the A&O Productions table, Weinberg sophomore Doug Singer passed out buttons and fliers.
“We don’t want people to come to us and say ‘I didn’t know what was going on’ or ‘I couldn’t get tickets,'” he said.
Bryan Tolles, Associated Student Government’s executive vice president, began putting the event together last spring.
“It’s a chance for student groups to show what they’re about and solicit themselves” said Tolles, a Weinberg junior.
Some changes to this year’s fair included giving groups preassigned tables, instead of having volunteers rush to grab space in the Louis Room and surrounding areas, Tolles said.
“I think things went more smoothly today than they have in the past,” he said.
Still, the number of groups and visitors gave the fair a lively, if slightly chaotic, atmosphere.
“It’s a little overwhelming,” said Leah Witt, a Weinberg freshmen. “But I think it’s the only way to give freshmen a glance at what there is here to get involved with.”
The Daily’s Samantha Nelson contributed to this report.
