Have you noticed some of your colleagues leave their offices with a smile on the second Thursday of each month? If so, they are most likely heading over to the Student Union for the monthly gathering of the “Social Club.”
The Social Club is a time to relax and enjoy the company of colleagues. On each second Thursday of the month, faculty, staff and administrators gather in the Office of Academic Innovation (209 Smith Mezzanine) for food, drink and collegiality. There is a cash bar with food provided courtesy of an administrative unit. The doors open at 4 p.m. and the bar closes at 6:30 p.m.
There is no program. I repeat—there is NO program. Because alcohol is served, students cannot be included.
University Studies assistant professor, Alan MacCormack, said it best –“Twice a year, at Convocation and Graduation, we assemble, listen to fine words, socialize briefly over food and drink, and then disperse again to our respective academic silos. We also use the occasion to lament the decline of our sense of community and the absence of some venue to meet and socialize during the rest of the year.”
The Social Club is to provide a time and place for us to foster that sense of community.
A date to remember
With an event name like “Second Thursday Social Club” how can you possibly forget it?
The next convening of the Second Thursday Social Club will be held April 9 from 4-6:30 p.m. in the Office of Academic Innovation (209 Smith Mezzanine). The food sponsor will be the College of Urban and Public Affairs.
The inaugural convening of the Social Club was sponsored by the President’s Office and held on Thursday, February 12, and we met again on March 12, sponsored by the Provost’s Office. Between the two events, there were over 120 faculty and staff in attendance.
Make lasting connections
Colleagues who knew each other had time for engaging conversations. Many met others for the first time who they had only known by name. Some found out they grew up in the same state, went to the same college, lived near one another, and liked the same kind of beer.
We hope to see those who came in February and March, and are also counting on some new faces to make an appearance.
Who made it happen?
You have to be careful at PSU when you share an idea with the President or Provost—you just might get drafted to serve on a committee. That is precisely how the Social Club came about.
Responding to suggestions from several faculty members, like good academics, we formed a committee. Darrell Brown (Business), Joyce O’Halloran (Mathematics), Alan MacCormack (University Studies) and John Ott (History), with ex-officio members Bob Bucker (College of the Arts Dean), Rachel Martinez (from the President’s Office) and I were pressed into service and in short order came up with the plan.
We know the Social Club, in and of itself, is not the answer to making PSU a great place to work. It certainly takes more than just drinks once a month with your colleagues. That said, it is a way to get to know one another, unwind, and share food and drink.
We hope you make this part of your ‘Second Thursday of the Month’ tradition at PSU.
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