COVID-19 regulations have pushed student organizations to expand virtually and many new clubs have been forced to adapt to the new pandemic guidelines which largely prevents in-person recruitment and meetings.
The lack of in-person contact has changed the way organizations recruit new members and hold regular meetings. Despite this, the organizations that were recognized by Student Senate in the fall have found ways to welcome new members into their organizations.
“We have not changed any of our requirements to be recognized,” Katie Siegle, student organizations committee chair of the Student Senate, said. “But that’s not to say that we don’t understand how difficult it is to gain membership and hold elections. The Student Senate has seen organizations adjust to [COVID-19] on their own, by doing things like holding meetings online or having virtual speakers come and speak to the organization.”
Community Wellness Leaders (CWL), one of the newly recognized organizations, provides a safe space to promote mental, emotional, physical and food wellness. Since they have become an organization, they have had to find new ways to recruit members and have never had the chance to recruit in person.
“Myself and my three other [leaders] all started out recruiting through word of mouth and
explaining to our friends and classmates what our club was all about,” CWL President Dani Pyne said. “Luckily, we live in the age of social media, which has helped us promote our club and reach out to more URI students through Facebook and Instagram.”
Once in-person events can be safely held again, Pyne said she would love to have a recruitment table at the organization fair to help connect with potential new members.
CWL has been able to keep its members engaged through Zoom meetings and other activities though. CWL held a few Zoom meetings last semester as well as asynchronous activities, according to Pyne. Club members gave positive feedback on meetings, so Pyne plans on having more real-time activities through Zoom approximately once a week.
Organizations that have just recently been recognized also have no experience meeting in person with members pre-COVID. According to Pyne, however, CWL came at the perfect time, as they have been able to focus on student wellness during the pandemic and provide support to one another. Some things that members have enjoyed doing during virtual meetings is sharing healthy recipes with one another and participating in exercise classes.
“I am glad that we have had this club during this pandemic because it encourages people to take care of themselves during such a difficult time period,” Pyne said, “but we do look forward to the day where we can all come together when it is safe.”
Pyne said members of the organization look forward to having a gathering space where they can work on projects together and become a tighter kit community.
Even though organizations have faced challenges, they are still an important part of URI, According to Siegle. She said that there weren’t any organizations that were recognized in the fall that didn’t meet the requirements.