Northeastern clubs kick off the new academic year at Fall Fest
More than 500 organizations were represented at this year’s Fall Fest on the Boston campus, including student clubs, sports teams and affinity groups.
Riding high off its first national championship victory earlier this year, Northeastern University’s Roundnet Club is raring to recruit new members in hopes of continuing its good fortunes.
In roundnet, like volleyball, the goal of the game is to spike the ball to prevent your opponent from volleying the ball back, explained Leah Magg, a fifth year student at Northeastern University and co-captain of the club, while manning the team’s table Tuesday afternoon on Cabot Quad.
But instead of volleying a ball over a net, players bounce the ball off of a small circular trampoline on the ground.
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Roundnet, otherwise known as spikeball, is gaining traction on college campuses throughout the country — today close to 300 universities have spikeball teams. And the eight-year old club is hoping that excitement and its recent first place win will be key in helping it recruit new Huskies.
“We’re really trying to bring in new talent and build them from the ground up,” added Tim Matten, a fourth year student and co-captain of the team. “We really want to build up the future of the club.”
Magg and Matten were among hundreds of student club leaders on hand for Northeastern University’s Fall Fest, the annual autumn fair where student clubs, sports teams, and affinity groups promote their organizations to first year students on the eve of the start of the academic year.
As part of the university’s Welcome Week of events, more than 500 organizations had tables spread throughout the Boston campus — from Krentzman Quad and Centennial Common to Egan Pathway and Sculpture Park. They include everything from the Northeastern University Chess Club, the Cooking Club, and the Surf Club to the Digital Health Club, Happiness Club and the Composting Club.
The campus was packed on the breezy fall day, with many students having to squeeze past each other to navigate through particularly crowded areas such as Krentzman Quad.
Students were treated to a host of treats including confectionery, salty treats, fried dough, popcorn, and ice cream.
For first-year students Issac Sidmore and Liam Mahoney who, following convocation, took a stroll through Krentzman,the day couldn’t have been going better.
Sidmore, a bioengineering major, said he was interested in learning more about Northeastern’s Survivor Club, where students compete in challenges similar to the popular CBS reality show Survivor. Many students partake in the experience because of their love of the show.
“I was also looking at the genetics club,” he said, noting that the club aligns with his bioengineering interests.
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Mahoney, a psychology major, said he is big into running, so he’s hoping to learn more about the club that caters to that interest.
“Just anything with running or working out,” he said.
Just as much as Fall Fest is an opportunity for new students to learn about Northeastern’s many extracurricular opportunities, it’s also a chance for student leaders to champion their causes.
Established around four years ago, First Byte is a student run organization based out of Northeastern University that teaches K-12 students STEM subjects.
Nicholas Chen, a fourth year cybersecurity student and the club’s president, said the goal of the club – which has around 30 to 40 members — is to help prepare the next generation to be more tech literate.
Last year, for example, the team met with a group of middle school students in Roxbury to teach them basic web development skills, he said.
The organization partners with local youth and family service providers, including Camp Harbor View, Digital Ready and Squash Busters on the project.
Fall Fest, he said, is always one of the club’s biggest drivers to bring in new members.
What draws people in the organization is its mission and the opportunity for people to use their skills to make a difference, he said.
“A lot of us within First Byte do love teaching,” Chen said. “Classes that we are taught at Northeastern are not necessarily taught everywhere. This is kind of a way for us to give back to students in our community.”
