Students Embrace SGEF’s On-Campus Event with Positive Attitudes
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Student Green Energy Fund is hosting an on-campus Grab N’ Go tabling event that students are eager to get off their screens to attend, despite the continuing pandemic.
The Grab N’ Go tabling event is in replacement of SGEF’s annual Lunch and Learn event and will be mainly hosted online through social media posts, except for the Grab N’ Go tabling. It will be in front of The Nest from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Feb. 24.
SGEF Chair and Sophomore Biology Major, Jewel “Min Min” Kelly said that she hopes the event will educate students about SGEF but also help them network and put a face to the SGEF logo because many students do not know they are automatically a part of the organization.
“SGEF is a fund to support student initiatives in and around campus that reduce the carbon emissions, energy cost, energy usage, and waste on campus,” Kelly said. “Every student pays one dollar per credit hour they take. This is automatically charged and voted on by students every three years,” Like I said, students are SGEF.”
With COVID still being a threat, SGEF said they have worked hard to make sure the event follows all campus regulations and puts the safety of students at top priority.
“The way the event works is that the month leading up to the event, a series of posts will be posted to all social media platforms. The goal is to network with students, similar to the lunch and learn, we want students to follow us so they can receive updates on what their tuition is investing in. We want students to share our content with friends because not everyone knows about SGEF and the social media posts themselves include information on what student money has gone towards,” Kelly said.
At the tabling event, students will be able to pass by or stay for 5 minutes or less to share one fact they learned about SGEF through social media posts. In return, they will earn goodies. The goodies include, SGEF branded glass water bottles, masks, tote bags, flower starter kit, and bamboo cutlery.
Although the organization was hesitant to host a non-virtual event, they were also hesitant about the amount of impact their event would have if it were held virtually. Kelly said that in order to make SGEF and the event known, they would have to host something on campus.
“I am a strong advocate for non-computer-related events because as a student myself, I don’t want to attend them,” Kelly said.
Students agree, virtual events are not their favorite and rarely help them connect with campus organizations or make friends.
Grace Skipper, a Freshman Wildlife Biology Major, has never experienced a pandemic-free campus and said that she can’t wait to be able to participate in a part of the university community, even if it is at a distance.
“I want to go to the SGEF event for the reason it is there. To meet people, you know, network. I am actually super interested in that club. It is what I’m passionate about, conservation through education. I’m really excited about that and learning more about it,” Skipper said.
Sofia Arango is also a Freshman Biology Major and she said that she is also excited for the event because she said she thinks it is important students know about SGEF and its impact. She also said that she has had experience with online club events in the previous semester and did not enjoy them.
“At least for me personally, when it comes to virtual events it was just so draining, especially because, in my school life, that was all I was doing. I was constantly on my computer. So, when it was an activity still on a computer, it was just not an activity I was interested in at all,” Arango said.
Although SGEF said they know students are excited about the event. They said they want to ensure student safety. SGEF said the event will follow all campus policies regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. They plan to use chalk on the ground to help create physical distancing. Hand sanitizer and masks will be provided.
