Since February, the Office of Student Activities and Leadership Development has been hosting new and exciting weekly events known as “Try-it Tuesday.” Every Tuesday night, students have the opportunity to join a Zoom meeting to learn a new skill or be introduced to the work and mission of a club on campus.
Recently, I spoke with the Assistant Director of student activities, Dyann Serravillo, to learn more about Try-it Tuesday events. She explained how the idea behind the event was first proposed by Emily Rocha, who is also an Assistant Director of Student Activities and Leadership Development. Try-it Tuesdays began in the month of February, with the purpose of allowing students to both try new things during the academic year and to provide students with a way to connect during the long intersession between semesters. The first few Try-it Tuesdays allowed students to pick up skills or build up their exisiting ones, with opportunities to learn how crochet or understand the ins and outs of photography. After Serravillo proposed a way to incorporate Try-it Tuesdays throughout the Spring semester, the event evolved by featuring a different club each week. Serravillo spoke about how there are so many clubs on campus that are participating in amazing work, but many students are not aware of their accomplishments and greater impact. Thus, Try-it Tuesday events evolved to help promote awareness on the mission and goals of clubs on campus, allowing students to meet new people and helping clubs boost their membership numbers. At the start of the semester, student activities reached out to club leaders so that they could sign up to host a Try-it Tuesday, or if the organization knew about an upcoming event that aligned with Try-it Tuesday, they recommended the club to host a session.
I also talked about the successes of Try-it Tuesday with Serravillo and there were a few key themes she highlighted throughout our conversation regarding the benefits of the events. Not only have these sessions allowed clubs to gain new members—especially since there was not a traditional club fair this year—but another crucial component of the events relates to the connections they have to Franciscan values. She discussed how the events emphasize a sense of community, or brotherhood and sisterhood, which allows the Siena community to come together to learn new skills and meet new people. Serravillo also talked about how one of the largest benefits of Try it Tuesdays has been that they provide a scheduled event every week so that students have something to look forward to, while also providing clubs with a platform to reach a wider audience.
Given that I have attended Try-it Tuesdays throughout the semester and have enjoyed being introduced to new clubs, I hope that Student Activities and Leadership Development has plans to extend the events through to next semester. Serravillo spoke about how the office has not formally decided whether to continue the events, but there is a good possibility they may be able to use Try it Tuesdays or a similar event in the Fall. For instance, the events could also assist clubs during the shift to in-person events and serve as a constant reminder to students that participating in different clubs, whether in person or virtual, is an important part of the college experience.
Overall, Try-it Tuesday events have been a wonderful way for students to become involved on campus and for clubs to spread their mission, all while providing a reflection of Franciscan values. If you haven’t already, I highly recommend attending a Try-it Tuesday in the future!