Tag: Club Spotlight
Club Spotlight: Golf Club
by thecowl.news on April 27, 2017
Features
by Meaghan Dodson ’17
News Co-Editor
Club Spotlight: Debate Society
by The Cowl Editor on April 6, 2017
Features
by Sarah Gianni ’18
News Staff
Small but mighty. This phrase is fitting for the Providence College Debate Society (PCDS), an organization of about 20 students who travel to compete against teams from a variety of colleges and universities.
The team is led by President Jillian O’Melia ’17, Vice President Mackenzie Tor ’17, Treasurer John Whitney ’19, Secretary Annie Butler ’19, and Membership Director Carly Martino ’19.
“I joined debate my freshman year because I’ve always liked discussing topics and seeing different arguments for a position, so I thought it would be a good opportunity to learn more about the skills of debating and argumentation,” said member Patrick Reynolds ’18.
The team meets in Ruane 206 every Tuesday and Thursday at 7 p.m. to practice for upcoming tournaments and “run rounds.”
“Each round consists of six speeches of varying lengths from four minutes to eight minutes,” said member Kate Mechem ’17. “The two sides are referred to as the ‘Government’ team and the ‘Opposition’ team, with the Government team deciding on the debate topic and the Opposition team left to think on their feet,” she said.
Strict rules regulate the way in which arguments can be made or refuted as teams are not allowed to bring any knowledge to the debate that would not be available to the opposing team.
“This year PCDS has been able to compete in tournaments in New Orleans, Washington, D.C., and Berkley, California, and have competed against schools like Harvard, Yale, and Princeton,” said Reynolds.
In addition, PCDS recently hosted a tournament that included teams from Brandeis, Yale, Harvard, MIT, Northeastern, Stanford, Boston University, and other colleges.
“Each tournament has a theme chosen by the host school, so we spent our weekend wearing pink in honor of our Mean Girls theme, and decorated Moore Hall accordingly,” said Mechem. “The Debate Society is a welcoming, accepting, diverse group of students who are never shy to treat a newcomer like they’ve been on the team for years.”
Those who are interested can attend any of the club’s meetings, and no prior debate experience is required.
Club Spotlight: Her Campus
by The Cowl Editor on March 23, 2017
News
Tait Becker ’19
News Staff
Among one of the last Big East schools to launch a chapter, Providence College has recently decided to bring back Her Campus. Originally started in 2014 by Ashley Santiago ’17, along with other students, Her Campus is a new online platform for students to share their experiences at PC beyond the campus borders.
This club has given students the opportunity to write for Forbes Magazine, the self-described “number one media site for college women.” Participants in the club aim to share their PC experiences and profiles of other students, professors, and faculty in an effort to share why PC is special to so many people.
Her Campus gives students the ability to write about a variety of topics, with great emphasis placed on students writing about what is intriguing and special to them about their time here at the College. Topics range from fashion trends to personal experiences on and off campus.
While the club is still working towards becoming an approved club on campus, they are actively seeking those who are interested in getting involved in this type of writing experience. Members hope that, by writing about the PC environment, lifestyle, and academics, future Friars will be able to get a sense of what it feels like to be a part of the Friar Family.
Looking ahead, Santiago said, “I feel really excited to be a part of Her Campus. Even though we just started, I’m really looking forward to see what this can become and how much fun we can have with it.”
Any interested students can find out more information by contacting Santiago via email at AshleySantiago@hercampus.com.
Photography Club Spotlight: Humans of PC
by The Cowl Editor on March 17, 2017
News
by Meaghan Dodson ’17
News Co-Editor
If a picture is worth 1,000 words, then Providence College’s Photography Club is priceless.
Founded in 2012, the club has used photography as a means of connecting the PC campus through art. Club members share photography skills and techniques as they work to create visual art. The club emphasizes collaboration as all members contribute to and manage various projects.
The club’s most popular feature is its Humans of Providence College (HOPC) project. Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, HOPC was created so the PC community could share its stories with one another. Club members take photos of people found on campus and then caption the portraits with short yet meaningful quotes. The quotes range from humorous to serious and everything in between—the point is simply to share one’s experience with others.
“We don’t go out looking to take a specific photo or find a particular person. We just find someone who wants to share a story,” stated Emily Hurley ’17, the club’s president. “We want to give everyone the opportunity for their voices to be heard.”
The PC community is encouraged to like “Humans of Providence College” on Facebook, or to follow @humansofprovcollege on Instagram, in order to see and share the stories.
The Photography Club and HOPC are always welcoming new members, as no prior experience is necessary. “It’s always exciting to see what new artists bring to the club,” Hurley stated.
Club Spotlight: Women’s Volleyball
by The Cowl Editor on March 3, 2017
News
by Marla Gagne ’18
News Co-Editor
Bump, set, spike! Every week in the Peterson Center, students can see the Women’s Volleyball Club Team running drills and gearing up for their next tournament at practice. From members of the travel team to club players, the group of 25 passionate athletes loves to get competitive and have fun.
In the past few years, female students have gone from playing on the Men’s Volleyball Club Team to creating a fully female team that competes in the Northeastern Women’s Volleyball Club League (NWVCL). Both travel and club members practice three times a week, but only the travel team competes in collegiate tournaments at colleges such as the University of New Hampshire and University of Connecticut.
For many of the players, the club has served as a way to continue the sport they love while also getting involved on campus. Treasurer Amanda O’Neill ’18 recalls first seeing a table for PCWCVB at the annual Involvement Fair.
“Volleyball had been a part of my life at that point for seven years, so seeing this table at a new school as a timid freshman was comforting,” she said.
Reflecting on her four years on the team, President Amanda Hartmann ’17 said, “I got involved my freshman year first semester and it really has defined my time at Providence.”
Practice and tournaments allow players to practice volleyball at a more competitive level than intramurals without having the varsity team commitment.
The team, which has a home tournament on Sunday, March 19 in Peterson, welcomes all students to try out in the fall or join the team to practice throughout the year.
“It is a great way to get involved and be active!” said Hartmann. Any interested students can find more information on the PC Club Sports page.
Club Spotlight: SEAC
by The Cowl Editor on February 17, 2017
News
by Sarah Gianni ’18
News Staff
Last week the city of Providence experienced a mild 50 degree day followed 24 hours later by a blistering cold snowstorm. Changes in the environment have been apparent all across the country, and it is imperative to start paying attention to them.
At Providence College, the Student Environmental Action Coalition (SEAC) is not only conscious of these environmental changes, but they are striving to take action.
“Our mission is to educate ourselves and the greater PC community about existing environmental issues, to make PC a more sustainable campus, and to increase interest in and respect for our environment,” said Co-President Angela Mascena ’17.
Mascena, ggh along withgggg Co-President Shannon Law-Clark ’17, leads a club of about 20 members.
The club sponsors agg series of events every year such as decorating a recycling bin, activities in honor of world water week, and local beach cleanups. The club also hosts other special events that differ from year to year.
“This past December we held an info session and Q&A about the Dakota Access Pipeline controversy,” said Mascena. “We had two guest speakers from the Fighting Against Natural Gas (FANG) Collaborative who lived and worked at the camps and protested at Standing Rock earlier in 2016.”
SEAC also organizes regular trips to local farmers’ markets and sponsors nature hikes to promote environment appreciation.
In looking towards environmental issues on a national level, SEAC believes that these events cannot be dismissed. “We are genuinely concerned about the lack of attention the environment is currently getting from the White House,” said Mascena. “We believe that, for the sake of our planet and the future of the species that reside on it, sustainability needs to be a priority on the national and international level.”
SEAC meets most Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. in Feinstein 315. For those who are interested in joining, email SEAC secretary Mitch Schrich ’18 at mschrich@friars.providence.edu.
Club Spotlight: IAB
by The Cowl Editor on February 10, 2017
News
by Daria Purdy ’19
News Staff
The Intramural Athletic Board (IAB) is an organization that allows students to get involved with running the intramural sports program. There are 18 current members of the board, and four who hold executive positions: Kaitlin Koste ’17, president; Joe DeChirico ’17, vice president of operations; Robert Taranto ’17, vice pesident of administration; and Kaitlyn Dempsey ’17, vice president of marketing.
DeChirico says the task of the IAB “is to make sure the intramural program runs as smoothly as possible and to make sure that students have a great overall experience.” The executive board meets with the Assistant Director of Intramurals, Nick Sweatt, to run day-to-day operations and to discuss big-picture goals.
The board members supervise the sporting events, and many of them are also officials. The IAB also completes administrative tasks, such as putting together equipment, creating scoresheets, and inputting statistics.
Along with supervising the 23 sports offered, the board runs some late night programming events, such as the basketball tournament that is held after Late Night Madness. The entire board meets together once a week.
DeChirico says “IAB is one of the smallest clubs on campus, so we always consider ourselves family.” The members of the board, along with running intramural sports, also participate in many of these sports.
DeChirico says, that since becoming a member of the board, he has participated in almost all the 23 intramural sports offered. The members of the IAB also get paid for their work. The application for new members will be sent out shortly before spring break. Information about the IAB can be found on their Instagram, via @pc_iab.
Club Spotlight: Believers of Words
by The Cowl Editor on February 3, 2017
News
By Sarah Gianni ’18
News Staff
It was a normal day for Phionna Claude ’18, reflecting on her freshman year self sitting at her desk in Meagher 207. She was preoccupied, however, pondering over an idea that she had held on to for some time. “I knew that I wanted to start a spoken word club on campus, but I didn’t know when or how I was going to do it,” she said.
Claude recalled thinking about why she not only loved writing poetry, but also the purpose behind performing her work through spoken word. “I thought to myself, I perform my work in this way because I believe in my words.”
The phrase “believe in my words,” would shortly become the spark that ignited her creation of the “Believers of Words” club (BOW), a group that harnesses spoken word, writing, and creativity.
Claude now sits as the president and co-founder of BOW, along with co-founder Ylaiza Perez ’16. BOW is also made up of Vice President Kayla Luciano ’18, Treasurer Dawyn Henriquez ’19, and Secretary Sara Jean-Francois ’19.
“BOW allows for a safe place to share, and is an outlet for those who want to take their writing one step further,” said Claude. “I started this club out of my own love for spoken word, because I know how much spoken word can be a breath of fresh air.”
While the idea of BOW was formulated in 2014, it formally became a club in the spring of 2016. The club began to grow their reputation on campus through various events, one of their most notable being the “Love your Melanin” slam poetry event in McPhail’s.
“We had poets share pieces that discussed the beauty, wonder, and struggle of being African American,” said Claude.
In addition, guest writer and performer Kai Davis shared her own words on the topic to close the show. Claude said she hopes “Love your Melanin” will become an annual event, with plans to host one again this spring.
In the fall of 2016, BOW held another event in McPhail’s, this time on the topic of love. “It was at the time that I felt everyone on campus knew that BOW had arrived,” said Claude. “I created the theme of ‘Fall in Love with Love’ to showcase love in every perspective,” she said.
Participants wrote on a range of topics, from their parents falling in love, to personal relationships, to heartbreak. “I feel like the performances brought people together as a family, through bearing their hearts on stage,” said Claude.
BOW welcomes anyone who may be interested in performance, writing, or simply observing. BOW meets every Monday night at 7 p.m. in the Unity Center.
Club Spotlight: One Love
by The Cowl Editor on January 27, 2017
News
by Daria Purdy ’19
News Staff
It is known that one in three women and one in four men experience some type of relationship violence throughout their lives. At Providence College, the One Love club has been created to address this issue of relationship violence.
One Love is a greater non-profit organization that was founded in 2010 after University of Virginia senior Yeardley Love was killed by her abusive boyfriend. The goal of the foundation, founded by Love’s mother Sharon Love, is to raise awareness about the consequences of relationship violence.
The One Love chapter at PC is lead by President Morgan Itz ’18, with Angela Martello ’18 as vice president, Katie Blue ’18 and Hannah Deignan ’18 as co-secretaries, and Meg Falcone ’18 as treasurer.
Itz says, “Our foundation as a club is to raise awareness and educate college students about the warning signs of relationship abuse and violence.”
Itz says that meetings of the club are generally based on discussion and event-planning. One meeting involved a One Love member as a guest speaker, who talked about her job and about the foundation as a whole. The club hopes to hold events to help educate the PC community about relationship violence, its warning signs, and what to do if you or a friend is affected by it.
Itz comments on the uniqueness of One Love, saying there is no other club like it on the PC campus. She says, “Many people do not like to talk about relationship violence or recognize that it is a problem here on campus, and our goal as the One Love club is to educate people on the severity of this topic.”
Itz believes it is essential that issues of relationship violence can be discussed on college campuses.