Written by Joel Blake
Every Friday, the Harding campus sees the true colors of its students (well the social club colors, that is). Chapel dismisses and students, many of whom sport club-colored jerseys as they wait, flood the student center, in line for coffee or chicken biscuits. While the colors of the 13 women’s clubs and 15 men’s clubs at Harding are familiar to most students, the unfamiliar colors of two new women’s clubs are on the horizon.
The clubs will create an equal number of men’s and women’s clubs on campus.
David Collins, Vice President for Student Life, said there was a significant increase in both men’s and women’s club participation last year and that Harding’s goal is to extend that progress.
“We believe in the social club program, and we want to give the girls at this school more of an opportunity to participate,” Collins said.
Over the past few years, two women’s clubs have dissolved: Tri Kappa in 2003 and Kappa Gamma Epsilon in 2008. This has created a shortage of opportunities for girls who want to participate in clubs.
Collins said these new clubs are now in the developing stages. He and Director of Campus Life, Corey McEntyre, are conducting interviews with those willing to take on the task of forming these new clubs. Those chosen to head the new clubs have a large task at hand as they must work with experienced sponsors willing to assist in tasks such as finding new members, constructing a constitution and choosing a name and colors. Collins said the Office of Student Life’s goal is for these clubs to be mid- to large-sized so as to maximize the number of girls who would be able to join.
According to the Harding University Social Club Handbook, a new club will only be approved in a spring semester, and to take on an induction class the following fall a new club must be chartered by Feb. 1. This means that if all goes as planned, these two new women’s clubs should be functioning in the spring of 2009 and will take a new induction class in one year.
“We are trying to create clubs that are viable to the social club process,” McEntyre said.
He also said girls are currently being sought to be part of these clubs and those interested can contact him.
