By Samantha Ormsby, News Correspondent

Students often walk through Northeastern’s Centennial Common, passing booths, tables, live music, even free food and giveaways. Student leaders who want to change this are attempting to engage more on-campus students in university activities through the Web.

Clubs and organizations are increasingly turning to social media sites like Facebook and Twitter and  to connect with students who are not checking out different activities at campus fairs during the week.

Matthew Crimmins, Student Government Association (SGA) vice president for student involvement, said that the most effective way to get students involved in on-campus activities is through club promotion.

“As an organization, you need to put yourself out there and be visible to the eyes of students,” Crimmins said. “Every semester there is an activities fair. It really is a great way to get involved. The beginning of the semester is when students are most willing to join. It is an opportunity that student organizations should not miss.”

But other organizations such as the Council for University Programs (CUP) have a different approach.

“We have something called SWAG which stands for ‘stuff we all get,’” CUP President Rachel Chevalier said. “We give away different things like planners, CUP cups, etc.”
Marisa Diaz, a third-year political science major, said she thinks there are plenty of opportunities for students to stay active on campus.

“There are definitely many different ways for students to get involved,” Diaz said. “Even if it doesn’t mean joining a club, there is always something going on on campus that students can participate in.”
Northeastern has more than 280 clubs this year, along with 40 club sports, according to SGA.

“In general as a student body, we are extremely active and very involved,” Crimmins said. “There are so many students each year that want to create their own clubs too, which is why that number is always changing.”

On the other hand, joining clubs is not something all students do.

“I don’t join clubs because I find it hard to make the commitment with so many other things going on,” Grace Munns, a fourth-year student, said.

For those trying to get involved, social media has become an important factor in student involvement in on-campus activities. Many clubs and organizations can be found on Facebook, Twitter and a new outlet called OrgSync.

According to Northeastern’s OrgSync site for campus activities, it is described as a new online program that provides for more connection on campus. The website separates all student organizations into categories and lists each club along with a brief description, meeting information and an individual homepage link. The university’s OrgSync page can be found at http://neu.orgsync.com.

“Orgsync is a huge thing and it’s getting more and more inclusive,” SGA President Mike Sabo said.

Reliance on social media to spread the word seems to be a common factor among different clubs.

“We’re on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and we’re launching a mobile app,” Sabo said. “We really like to utilize the social media. We’re also starting new ideas like an electronic discussion form. You need a Husky Card to post, and you can comment and rate on things. It is going to be called NU Ideas, and the company is Idea Scales.”

CUP’s Chevalier said the multitude of outlets to attract students is good for all groups.

“The more different ways we can reach out to students, the more students we can get involved,” Chevalier said.

Similarly, leaders of CUP have started to use social media more as part of their recruitment strategy.

“We rely on our Facebook page because every event we do is published on Facebook,” Chevalier said. “It’s the easiest way to get the word out because friends can invite friends and it shows up on their news feed.”

But it is ultimately up to students to take the plunge and get involved.

“Take a risk, you never know what you will come to embrace,” Sabo said. “Have fun and enjoy every minute of it.”