For the past couple years, DePauw After Dark has offered students free food and activities on the weekends. Julia Sutherlin, Assistant Dean of Campus Life, said, “The goal is just to give students something to do. At least one night every weekend and something to do whether that’s here on campus, out in the community or in a surrounding area.”
In the interest of shaking things up, DePauw offers a variety of activities, like First Friday, Final Friday Freebie and also holds spaces for student organizations who will occasionally co-sponsor events.
The events hosted by DePauw After Dark cater to students who may not be attending parties. “We are really focusing on the students who might not be going out to places with alcohol, might not be going to parties, or maybe they want a night off from doing that,” Sutherlin said. “[If] we get 50-60 people who come to an event. That’s a huge success for me. We do a variety of different events so that we can meet different needs of students.”
There have been positive reactions from students regarding DePauw After Dark. Mei-Li Minnich, a First-Year, said that she enjoys the events because they are open to anyone and that activities are brought to campus so students do not have to travel outside of Greencastle.
Minnich also said that the events are useful for meeting other students and especially for transfer students or others who are new to the DePauw community. “I think that’s really helpful in building a community here,” Minnich said.
Mishal Ali, a sophomore, said she enjoys DePauw After Dark because it sponsors different events than other student organizations. “I like DePauw After Dark because it’s like, ‘take a break, have fun’ and it's always something unique because I don’t think any other club has had the opportunity to do or thought of doing a food truck, or something similar like that,” Ali said.
DePauw After Dark has already planned future events for the semester. The next event will be Mar. 6 at 10 p.m. with a food truck serving pizza and cupcakes.