SPLASH 2020: REVIEW
BU’s Annual Fall Splash: COVID-19 Friendly Edition
by Kelsey Martirano
Imagine you are playing Club Penguin online with your friends, bouncing back and forth between each other’s thoughtfully decorated igloos. Now, replace those igloos with Boston University’s clubs and thousands of eager BU students; the result would look pretty similar to Splash 2020.
Here is a very brief rundown of how the event worked:
Similar clubs were grouped on a website called Remo. Within these clusters, there were a few “floors” housing approximately 15 “tables.” Each table served as a separate space for each club, thus allowing students to come and go.
Overall, Splash went smoothly and served as a unique way to still hold the event while adhering to COVID-19 guidelines; however, it did not come without its fair share of challenges.
“Many students felt shy about turning on their cameras or speaking into the microphone,” BUTV10 General Manager Malaika Moyer(COM ’21) said. “We definitely had less face-to-face interaction, which I believe is important for people to be excited about your club.”
Despite the typical technical issues popping up here and there, each table only permitted six servers at a time.
Alpha Delta Pi member Jessica Zheng (CAS ’22) said: “We were limited in how many girls could attend, both on the side from ADPi and also on the side of girls who were interested in ADPi. In the past, Splash has been an event where ADPi girls of all years can come together and showcase why they chose this specific chapter and the Greek life experience overall, but unfortunately, since we were only allowed to have six girls at one virtual table, we were limited in showcasing all of our amazing members.”
Subtracting the one or two club leaders trying to recruit members, that often left only four or five spots for interested students. As a result, students either found themselves waiting in designated waiting rooms or joining another club’s table to pass the time.
Despite the difficulties, Splash 2020 still proved to be a success.
“I liked the whiteboard system,” Moyer said, adding that the student turnout was positive. “It allowed for us to leave information available while we chatted with other students. It was also nice that Remo offered a safe alternative for everyone to join if they wanted to—especially those in different time zones.”
Zheng expressed similar thoughts regarding the benefits of the remote Splash experience.
“One of the advantages we experienced being online was the ability to connect despite the pandemic,” Zheng said. “I think virtual Splash also increased the accessibility of the event in general, considering there are often students who cannot make it out to the physical Splash event or feel as if they don’t have time to visit all the clubs and organizations they’re interested in.”
Nevertheless, Splash 2020 was an accessible and enjoyable experience, marking the beginning of a strange, yet exciting, semester.