By Vanessa Mavie Hofer
While during last year’s ‘First 40 Days’ only two of those events were able to get an attendance rate over 150 students, this year 150 is at least the standard – some events are even showing record numbers!
Ashley Templeton, Associate Dean of Students, and Myles Sandolph, Coordinator of Recreation, Involvement and Student Engagement, talked about the reasons and causes for the high attendance numbers this year. “MC Red Zone is definitely one of the main reasons. It offers something new and exciting for the students and brings more variety to campus.”, so Sandolph, who is not only heavily involved in the MC Red Zone but also the supervisor of MAC Entertainment (formerly known as SAB). MAC Entertainment is an organization under Student Affairs, although completely led by students and is hosting not only the tailgates before certain sport events but also many more events on campus. “For the longest time we have been trying to figure out the best way of capturing the sense of belonging for students”, Templeton explains. She elaborates how the focus of Student Affairs this year is on how to make everyone feel like they have a home at McPherson. Tailgates seemed as the best option to bring a variety of student groups together – and it shows! The attendance numbers at games have been rising and people enjoy the tailgates before sporting events. While MAC Entertainment is hosting tailgates, the Business Club is also playing a big role in the increased numbers. With the ‘Frat Boys’ theme at a volleyball game earlier this semester, the Business Club was able to fill the student section up to the very last seat. And McPherson College might see some more collaborations between MAC Entertainment and the Business Club in order to keep the attendance rates and support at games as high as it has been.
