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Syracuse University’s first-year involvement fair is going virtual this fall, as orientation events usually held in person take on new forms during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This year, organizations such as First Year Players, Jerk Magazine and Danceworks will participate virtually in the Orange Blast! Involvement Fair on Friday from 8-10 p.m. The event is geared toward freshmen and transfer students during Welcome Week, which starts Monday.

SU students told The Daily Orange that they got involved in campus organizations by attending involvement fairs, following clubs on social media and checking out bulletin boards around campus.

Last fall, sophomore Zoe Glasser came across the Involvement Fair on the Quad as she walked out of her work-study job in Maxwell Hall. Glasser knew she wanted to get involved with a publication on campus, and Jerk Magazine caught her eye.

Amanda Kruman, a sophomore at SU, researched clubs and organizations she was interested in on SU’s website and followed their social media pages. She ended up joining Danceworks and now runs public relations for the group.

Danceworks is SU’s largest student-run dance organization on campus and is audition-based. In total, Danceworks is a group of over 100 students, including their executive board. Kruman especially enjoys being part of the e-board, as it creates a smaller, more intimate team within a large organization.

“We’re all just coming in the same group to do what we love, and there’s no competition,” Kruman said. “It’s just support, there’s no negativity at all and it’s a very supportive group of very positive energy.”

Danceworks usually holds its performance in March, but performance-based groups are unsure of what the spring semester will look like, or how auditions and rehearsals will take place this year. As of now, most meetings and events will likely be virtual.

FYP is also navigating the uncertainty of what this academic year will look like. The student-run musical theater organization puts on a musical every spring performed by first-year and transfer students and organized by returning staff.

Auditions are held in the spring, with workshops and general interest meetings in the fall. While not required, the fall meetings allow the FYP staff and students who plan to audition become familiar with each other prior to auditions.

Senior and co-producer Sam Harasimowicz said FYP is much more than an organization that puts on shows. For Harasimowicz and co-producer Trevor DeLello, FYP has become a home for them over their years in the group.

“We are built around people’s love of musical theater, but for so many people, including me and Trevor, it has become a home on campus, between going to staff meetings and all of the fun projects that we get to work on and all the friends that we’ve made,” Harasimowicz said.

Joining clubs and organizations of interest is one way for students to get involved in campus life, make friends and find their niche. For sophomore Thomas Cheng, getting involved in OttoTHON helped him make new friends.

OttoTHON, SU’s 10-hour dance marathon, is one of the larger organizations on campus that students can join. Participants raise money for kids receiving care at Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital in Syracuse. It’s currently unclear what form the event will take this year, given SU has limited gatherings to 25 people to avoid transmission of COVID-19.

DeLello feels confident that, with all the creativity among the members of FYP, they can find ways to work around restrictions and make this year the best as possible.

“The best part about this organization is that it’s filled with so much creative energy that, as much as the school might say ‘you can’t do this,’ we can tweak it and make it our own,” DeLello said.

Published on August 16, 2020 at 3:25 pm

Contact Gavi: gavi@dailyorange.com | @gavi_azoff