What is the Source?
Written by Chandler Ryd
While the hot residue of summer fades, the College campus comes alive under a series of expansive white tents on the quad in an event know as “The Source.” Organized by the Student Activities Board (SAB), The Source pulls together various campus organizations and clubs to vie for the attention – and email addresses – of prospective members.
Each student organization sets up a table manned by a couple spokespeople who market the club to passerby using brochures, videos, and occasionally even baked goods and candy. There’s usually an email sign-up list so clubs can follow up with interested individuals and keep them in the loop with events and club meetings. Student literary publications, like Tower Light or The Forum, often hand out past editions of their magazines.
The new school year represents a fresh start for campus organizations: returning students, who tend to underestimate their homework load, explore new clubs, and freshmen, eager to get involved in campus life, often put their name on every email list. The atmosphere is full of energy and excitement, an unabashed, self-promoting flea market of club activities, volunteer organizations, and intramural sport teams. There is truly something for everyone at The Source.
For incoming freshmen, The Source is an invaluable opportunity to explore the various activities that Hillsdale College offers – it’s one of the few times every year for students to see what every club has to offer and discover new interests. It serves as a diving board for the uninitiated to plunge into campus life.
But The Source isn’t just for freshmen. The Source offers returning students the chance to break out of their comfort zones, increase campus involvement, and explore the town of Hillsdale. SAB Director Anthony Manno promises good music, great giveaways, and free food. And along with the conglomerate of campus clubs, many local businesses, from banks to restaurants, participate in The Source as well. Campus clubs and businesses combined, there will be over one hundred total groups represented—just think of the amount of free stuff a clever student could accrue from those display tables.
Novelist, filmmaker, and resident root-beer snob, Chandler Ryd, ’18, is the president of the Creative Writing Club. He studies English in his free time. You can usually find him in the periodicals section of the library.