The Office for Student Involvement (OSI) held Club Day on Jan. 16 in the indoor plaza and the South Lounge, splitting the club tables into two spaces and raising some frustration with the new layout.
Some clubs felt they had an advantage with the new setup. The Fordham Lincoln Center (FLC) Chamber Singers President Aramus Price, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’26, was happy with the setup because they were given “prime real estate.” Her club was situated in the indoor plaza, with higher foot traffic at the entrance of the event, which was new for them.
“Usually we are not as popular so they put us in the back,” Price said.
Prism, the FLC LGBTQ+ committee, also had a heavily trafficked table at the front of the event. Vice president of Prism, Emmy Gehrke, FCLC ’27, was pleased with the table placement and the outcome of club day.
“It’s kind of a bad spot because we don’t get a lot of traffic, as opposed to the people out in the front.” Diego Lopez, FCLC ’26
“It’s going well. We’ve had some sign-ups, some people visiting from last year again,” Gehrke said.
Some clubs had the opposite experience with the new arrangement. Diego Lopez, FCLC ’26, president of the Taekwondo Club, said he was frustrated with his placement in the South Lounge, which was removed from the indoor plaza and saw significantly fewer attendees.
“It’s kind of a bad spot because we don’t get a lot of traffic, as opposed to the people out in the front,” Lopez said.
Christina Frankovic-Sepsi, director of OSI, explained that the method behind the table assignments is a lottery system.
“We take a list of all the clubs and we put it into Excel and randomize it and then whatever number they turn up is the number table that we put them at,” Frankovic-Sepsi said.
OSI reported that 350 students checked in at the event, but more students attended without registering. The atrium, the usual venue for the event, is currently closed due to roof maintenance, prompting OSI to rearrange the layout of tables. Frankovic-Sepsi said that this decision was made to separate the food from the event.
“Because we couldn’t have the tables in the atrium, we had to separate where the food was from where that secondary location is. So that’s why we had to use the South Lounge for clubs and then the student lounge for food this year. But typically we’ll have the food where the other clubs are to attract more people to come through,” Frankovic-Sepsi said.
Although many club officers expressed their dissatisfaction with this semester’s Club Day, they successfully shared their goals with the students in attendance.
Sofia Fappiano, FCLC ’25 and vice president of Tomodachi Club, said that although his club was formed just a few years ago, it has already been a resounding success. The club celebrates Japanese culture in many ways, with the most popular event being its Kinakuna book outing (a Japanese-owned bookstore in Bryant Park).
“Learning about other cultures than your own, honestly making connections, making new friends who are also into the same culture that you are,” Fappiano said when asked what people get out of the club.
Hayley Ng, FCLC ’26 and editor-in-chief of The Comma — Fordham’s literary and arts magazine — said that The Comma offers many opportunities and benefits to its members.
“We were hoping to do some outings to bookstores and some cafes to really draw in more students and have a nice community where we can chill and talk about stories,” Ng said.
The club allowed Ng to pursue her interest in creative writing as she focused more academically on STEM.
This semester’s Club Day brought organizational changes that sparked frustration among some club officers. While some clubs benefited, others struggled with attracting and connecting with attendees to showcase their goals and mission.