On April 2, the Office of Student Engagement will host the annual Spring Fling. This is the first time that Lindsay Henderson, the Assistant Director of Student Engagement, has been in charge of planning the event.
This Spring Fling will feature many of the same free activities as in previous years. It will feature a moon bounce, big glove boxing, bungee runs, gladiator jousting and an inflatable chair that people can get their picture taken on and then receive a free photo keychain of the picture. It will also have many of the same freebies that students received in the past including screen printed t-shirts and food.
However, this Spring Fling will see some additions as well. This year clubs were encouraged to host events for students to participate in during Spring Fling, and several clubs took the Office of Student Engagement up on the offer. Sophisticated Ladies and Gentlemen are giving out free lemonade, Residence Life is hosting pie an RA, and the Wellness Center is hosting a tie-dye event as long as Spring Fling takes place outside.
In addition to the club events, this Spring Fling will feature musical and comedy acts. Three student bands will play during the daytime activities: Annedel, Boomstick, and One Jacob. A DJ will also play music during the day. At night, famous comedian and VH1’s “Best Week Ever” cast member Christian Finnegan is performing in the theater.
Henderson said she wanted to honor what students wanted from Spring Flings of the past. However, she also wanted to show students that new activities, such as bands and a famous comedian, could be fun Spring Fling activities as well.
Many students can’t wait for the traditional Spring Fling activities. Junior Heather Baker said that she is looking forward to the inflatables. Freshman Kaitlyn Kivi added that she was excited to spend the day with her sorority sisters. Students are also eager about the new Spring Fling additions. Freshman Teal Koch said that she was looking forward to checking out the bands.
Henderson said she is aware of the large presence of alcohol on Spring Fling. She denied the rumor that there will be “beer gardens” or “designated drinking areas.” She also added that the school’s alcohol policy on Spring Fling will be the same as every other day. She said she hoped that students make “good decisions for themselves and be safe.”
This is the first Spring Fling for all of the staff members of the Office of Student Engagement. Henderson said she first heard about Spring Fling during her interview process. She said during the process she was interviewed by several students, and when she asked them which campus activities were most important to them, they all said Spring Fling.
Before working at McDaniel, Henderson was a Director of Campus Activities at a college in North Carolina. She said that the college she previously worked at had a Spring Fling as well, but that it differed from McDaniel’s in its activities. She also said the Christine Workman had helped plan a Spring Fling at the college she previously worked at.
Henderson said she originally wanted to change the format of Spring Fling by bringing in famous bands. She explained that she got this idea after talking to several students who expressed interests in having bigger name performers come to Spring Fling. However, she said that she decided instead to keep many of the same activities that Spring Flings had in the past and bring in some smaller acts in addition to the previous activities. She said she didn’t want to upset students by eliminating aspects of Spring Fling that they seemed to enjoy in the past.
There is some worry that there will be bad weather on Spring Fling. However, Henderson confirmed that Gill is reserved for the event in the case of rain, and it will take place whether it rains or not.
