Photo by Vanessa Wenzl | The Crow’s Nest.
By Nicole Lobato
Book club, Badminton, and Brazilian Folktales and Myths: take a pick.
If you choose any letter from the alphabet and clicked “search” in the Bulls Connect platform–a networking resource offered by the University of South Florida to find campus events and clubs–you certainly would not be disappointed by the number of clubs and organizations displayed.
However, if you are from the St. Petersburg campus, there is an undeniable truth: Tampa seems to monopolize the student outreach scene.
With almost 15 times the number of organizations and clubs as USF St. Petersburg, USF’s largest campus is often looked at as the place with the most opportunities.
In fact, this factor leads a lot of freshmen to see USF St. Pete as a starting point, rather than the end goal.
Olivia Borek, a freshman English and Political Science major who intends to transfer to the bigger, clearly captures that feeling.
“Everything is so Tampa-focused. Although there are a lot of opportunities only a small-size campus like USFSP can provide once you start college life, the small size of the community, in the long run, can also work against you,’’ Borek said.
Borek said she does not see herself graduating at the St. Petersburg campus since there are many more opportunities to academically thrive in Tampa, given the number of events and clubs available.
While USF St. Petersburg does have less resources than the main campus, one must wonder: why does this have to be a bad thing?
Without as many options to choose from, students at USF St. Pete might be more inclined to develop a leadership and innovative mindset than if they were at Tampa, where they could just choose anything to get involved with, go to some meetings and then quickly lose interest.
If there are not enough options, students might as well create them.
Kasey Szel, director of Leadership and Student Organizations, points out that it is easier to connect and create new clubs at USF St. Petersburg. “For being a smaller campus, building a network is easier, especially for those who live on campus. Because everybody knows everybody. If you want to create a club, it is easier to know what to do,” Szel said.
Szel also highlighted that having the campus right in downtown St.Pete, connects projects to the community, allowing students to do great work and stand out.
Despite it looking good to have “founder’’ rather than “member’’ on one’s resume and besides all the natural learning that comes from leadership activities, one does not need to go so far as to create a completely new club to enjoy the opportunities of leadership at USF St. Petersburg.
In terms of already existing clubs, there are more positions available overall for USF St. Petersburg students, which makes it easier for students to truly engage in their organizations rather than just going to meetings and listening quietly.
Sabrina Gonzalez, a freshman majoring in Health Sciences, just became the secretary of LASA, the Latin America Student Association, and seems to highly value the opportunity of getting involved so early on in her college career.
“They had openings and I wanted to engage. There is less competition here, so in terms of clubs there are more positions open,’’ Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez said she did not believe she would have this leadership role if she was at USF Tampa., since there are so many people there.
The truth is we are largely shaped by the environment surrounding us, and being in a campus where everybody seems to be involved in something somehow is inspiring.
Gabriel Simpson, an interdisciplinary social sciences major, also takes St. Pete’s side in the dispute with Tampa, while still presenting some considerations:
“In Tampa, people are more limited. It’s harder to stand out in a crowd and easier to just get involved in random events without committing, really, to anything,’’ Simpson said.
On the other hand, he emphasizes, that “you have to make sure what you created is carried over, which is harder due to the small-size community.”
Overall, though there are pros and cons for both campuses, the truth is USF St. Petersburg does have the power to offer much more than meets the eye, and it all depends on how each student is able to take advantage of that.
