Having fun on campus or venturing into the Atlanta community has never been easier due in large part to the efforts of the Student Center Programs Council (SCPC). The council is responsible for organizing events and providing resources that impact the campus community by inspiring leadership, promoting unity and providing fun.
SCPC President Sanjana Basker sees the organization’s role on campus and its dedication to creating opportunities for students to have fun and take a break from Tech’s rigorous academics as unique and key to providing an enriching Tech experience.
“There are tons of opportunities on this campus to seek academic or personal enrichment, but there are few organizations committed to helping students really develop unique experiences and find a sense of community,” Basker explained.
Their commitment does not simply stop at hosting events and providing the necessary resources for fun but extends to a genuine concern for the experience and opportunities that are presented to students, even when barriers may arise.
By implementing several diversity-oriented initiatives, SCPC has been able to more closely adhere to a vital aspect of its mission: “consistently provide fun and high quality programs that appeal to all demographics of the Georgia Tech community.” For SCPC, this statement has been a key factor in many recent decisions and initiatives.
“SCPC strives to create events that appeal to all students, not just most,” shared Basker. “We’ve implemented a series of diversity-oriented initiatives in the past year. We’ve begun to seriously consider financial, physical and mental ‘barriers to entry,’ for our events and now adhere to a comprehensive checklist, informed by the Office of Disability Services, Office of Diversity Programs and other offices, on how to be more inclusive in all of our events.”
While the mission and structure of SCPC have remained fairly constant since its founding in the seventies, some small changes have been made. Changes, such as the recent implementation of the Presidential Leadership Cabinet (PLC) and a new focus on recruitment, reflect the council’s desire to remain in a position that best enables service to the campus community.
“PLC members come up with projects they see as important for SCPC, such as the construction of an inclusivity plan and checklist, or a system to recognize and reward excellent SCPCers, and then work in small teams to implement these changes to our organization,” said Basker. “It’s been a successful, if variable, structural change.”
SCPC also plans to create a dedicated recruitment team in order to better be able to affect all members of the Tech community with a particular focus on graduate students.
“We’re looking at ways to extend our recruitment not only to other undergraduate students, but to extend our reach with graduate students,” explained Basker. “We’re aware that a lot of our events appeal more to undergraduates than graduate students, but we also recognize that grad students are a critical and diverse demographic on campus, and by recruiting graduate students to participate in the planning process, we also increase the inclusivity of our events themselves.”
Through these changes and the dedication of the SCPC team to its mission, Basker hopes to see movement toward a more positive, enjoyable experience for Tech students.
“The impact that community spaces like the ones created by SCPC has on helping students cope with stress and pressure cannot be overstated,” Basker shared. “Hopefully, by being more intentional about how we include all ends of campus, we’re able to use our platform to create a
positive, uplifting events and spaces for more people and ultimately contribute to a larger
campus culture shift.”
It’s important to remember, however, that even amidst the more than fifty events put on by SCPC, positive change cannot be affected without the students.
Through student interaction, participation and dedication to community, SCPC is able to fully realize its goal of creating a fun, exciting space that is unique to each individual. A goal which is reflected in Basker’s hopes for the perception of SCPC.
“For those that come to our events, I hope they perceive us as an organization that cares about how students cultivate their unique Georgia Tech Experience. For those that don’t yet, I hope they recognize us and our events as spaces where they are always welcome. SCPC is for everybody,” she said.
Just as the desire for fun events on campus continues, so too does the work of SCPC. Several events, such as Tech Camera Action!, Coffee and Jazz, the Spring Comedy Show and an Atlanta United game are just around the corner and sure to provide an excellent time and opportunity to interact with the Tech community in a meaningful way.
Keep an eye out for SCPC’s upcoming events, which include Sting Break on April 5, the Spring Comedy show on April 12 and Midnight Breakfast during finals week among many other annual and pop-up events.
Additionally, check out SCPC @GTSCPC on Twitter, Instagram or Snapchat, and the
“Student Center Programs Council” page on Facebook to stay
in the know about the other upcoming events and initiatives put on by SCPC.