Attendance at the opening weekend of NDSU’s alcohol-free, late-night student event Club NDSU increased for the fifth year in a row and saw it’s biggest one-year jump since the event’s formation in 2006.
Club NDSU, which includes a disc jockey, dancing, a video game lounge, free bowling, billiards, food and non-alcoholic drinks, had 2,033 in attendance during the opening weekend dance on Aug. 21. Last year, a total of 1,748 attended the event.
“Club NDSU is always a highlight for freshmen,” said Welcome Week leader Paige Anderson, a sophomore child development and women and gender studies major. “When talking to them, it is always the one thing they look forward to, and the event that ends up being their favorite.”
Club NDSU, other dances, game nights and theater events are sponsored by the Campus Live Program on Saturdays throughout the year. The goal is to provide fun, late-night activities on campus in support of students making low-risk decisions about alcohol use. More than 21,000 students attended late-night on-campus events last academic year.
Students who get a drink from the non-alcoholic bar at Club NDSU receive a follow-up, individualized email with information about their estimated blood alcohol concentration, calories ingested and money spent had they chosen to consume alcohol instead of attending the event.
The bartenders are volunteer students from campus organizations who receive training on the educational purpose of the bar at Club NDSU.
The 2013-14 Campus Live schedule and event details are available at www.ndsu.edu/campuslive. The next Club NDSU is scheduled for Dec. 14.
Campus Live is funded by the President’s Council on Alcohol and Other Drugs in collaboration with the Memorial Union, Campus Attractions, Wallman Wellness Center, Division of Fine Arts, Residence Hall Association and the Division of Equity, Diversity and Global Outreach.
NDSU is recognized as one of the top 108 public and private universities by the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education.