Well, we’ve done it higher educators, our students who started their first year online during a pandemic have matriculated to their senior years. We hope most are on track to “finish in four” and become the productive alumni we promised their parents at our Fall 2019 open houses.
These students were shaped by many life-altering events and their younger cohorts are starting to show a deeper appreciation for a key component of our programs and services — facilitating a sense of belonging. Years of social awkwardness, fueled by isolation, have created a need for group cohesion, the warmth of friendship and a clamoring for the shared experience of recreation.
The peer connection we offer is our most important asset to belonging and one hidden in the exceptional programs and services we offer every day.
Adventure Employees
ECU Student Affairs recently updated its core values to include belonging as a central tenant of operations. When I started brainstorming for this post, the first group I thought of was our Adventure staff and the family created within their ranks. These students work together, play together, live together and seldom have any turnover. The first-year student hired as a climbing wall attendant typically matriculates through the program to a trip leader and stays until they graduate. I cannot think of an employee base that is more loyal to an area, more passionate about their job duties and who live the culture they promote. Most evenings you can find a group of 20 students, many of them employees who are not working, hanging out at the climbing wall just to stay connected. The family Adventure creates is almost unmatched within campus recreation departments and contributes to their continued success.
Club Sports Teams
Fraternity and sorority life espouses a lifelong bond for their chapter members, but I would argue club sports teams provide the same bond just with a pair of cleats, skates or swim goggles attached. The camaraderie developed on the field during practices, in a van traveling 300 miles on a Friday night or at a post competition dinner lasts forever.
I played rugby during my undergraduate days and the men I met on that pitch were my brothers for life. We sweated on the field, bonded socially on the weekends and took common classes to support each other through our academic journeys. You can see social connection in the club sports model in the pride of teammates sporting club gear on campus, creating a social media presence and recruiting high school students to join their ranks at regional events. Club sports are no longer just a group of students playing games. They are pseudo-varsity sports playing games on ESPN+ for coveted national championships.
Fitness Classes
If you have never taken a fitness class at 5:30 a.m. or joined a “lunch bunch” faculty/staff cycle session you may never understand the group cohesion built through the sweaty struggle. The genuine concern shown by fellow participants when a “regular” misses a class illustrates the connection developed. Encouragement delivered between sets and difficult cycle climbs creates a welcoming atmosphere and develops the support system necessary to keep people coming back for their next exercise class.
The best illustration of this is by new boutique fitness centers offering classes, or group runs, followed by social gatherings. Participants want to bond over the shared experience of a workout and then stay for a drink and some snacks while they chat about life. The business model of the private sector is working and one we as campus recreation practitioners should pay attention to as trends shift.
Special Events
The most transcendent of activities on a college campus is a large special event whether that be one focused on athletics, student activities or recreation.
Many of us host large “rec fest” gatherings each August to introduce thousands of students to our programs and facilities, but what many may not see is the connections we are building. Most of our participants have never visited a facility as large as the ones we operate and very few have seen the scope of the events we produce. The awe of their first college experience, coupled with the nervousness of meeting new people, is daunting. However, our relaxed atmosphere allows new students to bond over a slice of pizza, a silent DJ or a race on an inflatable obstacle course.
Our stated outcome for an event may be to educate participants on recreational offerings, but truthfully the most important outcome is for a participant to find a friend who will encourage them to come back the following Monday for some basketball or a trip to the weightroom.
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