Raymond Baccari
Editor-in-Chief
A new semester at Rhode Island College means new opportunities to get involved on campus. Towards the end of last semester, Kristen Salemi was promoted to be the new director of student activities at RIC. Now in this new position, she has planned a number of events on campus this semester.
Starting off the list is a full line up of RIC featured events containing performances from both comedians and musicians that Salemi describes as “quality entertainment with something for everyone!”
“All of these performers are well-known in the college entertainment industry and tour nationally in a variety of established venues; and several have been on TV and open for other well-known acts,” Salemi added.
Event number one from this line up occurred earlier this month. Those who were in attendance saw John Rush, also known as “The Human iPod,” perform at the Donovan Dining Center.
The remaining events from this line up will all be in the Student Union Ballroom and at 6 p.m. on their respective dates:
Ball in the House, a Boston-based acapella group will be performing at RIC on Wednesday, Feb. 1.
On Wednesday Feb. 8 will be a performance by Ashlee Haze, a poet and spoken-word artist from Atlanta by way of Chicago.
Comedian Azeem will be performing later on in the month of February on Monday, Feb. 13.
And last from this line up of events will be a performance by comedian Nico Carney on Monday, April 17.
It isn’t just performances by musicians and comedians on the calendars for this semester, but also a regular rotation of game-style fun. Events such as BINGO, hosted by the Student Activities, Trivia, hosted by the Unity Center and Karaoke, hosted by the Military Resource Center will all take place in Donovan, every Thursday at 6 p.m. And there will be prizes.
Also in February will be RIC’s 2023 Winterfest. This free event will take place at the Quad on Saturday, Feb. 18 from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. and everyone in the RIC community is invited: Students, families, alumni, faculty, staff, administration and prospective students.
Later that day this event will have a skating party in Downtown Providence from 4 p.m. until 6 p.m. This event will be free for RIC students, and kids under six.
For the first half at the Quad, Salemi told The Anchor there will be “live music, carriage rides, ice [sculpture] games, [Winterfest] Waffles, Smores, Chili, Hot Chocolate and more.” The first 100 students will also receive a free RIC pom-pom hat. Those who are interested in signing up for this event can do so here.
Moving forward, all of these events and future events at RIC can be found in one spot: ric.edu/events. Aside from the link, there will also be QR codes posted around campus that look like the one pictured below:
There are also a few ways to be involved on campus this semester aside from attending events. RIC’s Emerging Leaders program will be from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. every Friday, starting on Feb. 17. Those who participate in this program will learn more about themselves and others, meet new friends, learn about resources RIC has to offer and build their resume.
The goal for the Emerging Leaders program is “to provide a foundation to become confident, aware, and engaged citizens -- while exploring topics related to self-understanding, cultural competency, communication and teamwork, social responsibility, professionalism, and mentorship.” Anyone who is interested in signing up can do so here, and additional questions can be asked to Emily Pucino via email at epucino_3931@email.ric.edu.
Students will also have an opportunity to find out more about what student organizations and clubs are offered at RIC. On Wednesday, Feb. 1 from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. is the Student Activities Involvement Fair. Those who attend not only can find out about what organizations are on campus, but even join whatever student clubs they are interested in, becoming more involved in student life at RIC.