Michelle Hernández/THE RIDER
The Vaqueros Clubs: Campus Takeover, an event part of Welcome Week, took place on Sept. 2 on the Edinburg campus and Wednesday on the Brownsville campus. The event, run by the Center for Student Involvement and Fraternity and Sorority Life, helps promote the various clubs a Vaquero student can join, according to an official.
Francisco Leal, program coordinator for CSI, said it is an opportunity for student organizations to recruit new members and for students to learn what they are about.
“Each organization is hosting an activity that’s interactive for the students that are attending,” Leal said. “They’ll be able to engage with them, learn more about them, and also get the opportunity to see what the membership looks like once they join.”
Sophia Jaramillo, a biomedical science freshman, said this type of event benefits especially the freshmen.
“I’ve been really wanting to join some clubs, so it’s a really good event,” Jaramillo said. “It’s definitely brought more light to the opportunities that we have here, especially as freshmen.”
Edward Garza, an electrical engineering graduate student and president of Club Esports, said it is an honor to go to an event like the takeover to promote the club.
“It’s always a pleasure to get invited to this event,” Garza said. “It’s always been a huge honor… because [UTRGV has] always been super helpful with growing our community and growing our player base as well.”
Nathan Watson, a political science junior and public affairs officer for the College Democrats of Brownsville, said it is important for UTRGV students to join and engage with the clubs on campus.
“There’s more than just our club…there’s a whole bunch of clubs tailored to everyone’s different interests,” Watson said.
Michelle Hernández/THE RIDER
Victor Alvarez, a political science senior, said it is nice to “just get involved with the newer class … trying to get more of a culture going around the campus is really fun and really exciting.”
Carlos Esparza, a civil engineering senior, said some of the clubs there were pretty interesting.
“They don’t really have much to do with my major, but they’re very, I would say, welcoming,” Esparza said.
Leal hopes events like these during the Welcome Week can show the campus life and the spirit of UTRGV.
“It’s an opportunity to showcase from our perspective as people that plan the events, so that way they can see all the work that we’ve done,” he said. “Also, just in general, they know that there’s stuff outside the classroom that they can partake in. It’s not just the books, the studying, but there’s also the opportunity to join an organization or just have fun at an event being hosted on campus.”
According to CSI, the final attendance for the Brownsville event was 472 students, while the Edinburg event was 881 students.
