Wednesday afternoon, Plattsburgh State students braved powerful gusts of wind and spells of rain to attend the annual Spring Carnival, hosted by College Auxiliary Services along with the student-run Activities Coordination Board.
Kansas’ “Carry on Wayward Son” evoked dust-bowl vibes throughout the courtyard behind Clinton Dining Hall, where a celebration of warm weather and an almost-end to classes commenced.
Tables lined the courtyard and offered numerous activities and “giveaways” for participants to enjoy.
“Last year, we had the carnival in a different location due to the construction being done on Wilson Hall,” said Jessica Falace, Student Association president. “Even though we are not able to do things like inflatables this year, we’re able to have more giveaways.”
One table featured blank frisbees and Kanye-style shades waiting to be decorated by rogue splashes of paint bursting onto a spinning canvas in a process known as spin art. Attendees left with fresh bamboo shoots planted in miniature ceramic pots, time-appropriate stress balls, interactive sand art in the shape of hearts, stars and smiley faces, and pictures from the photo booth.
“Eve Barnofsky and Tim Miller have both worked super hard to plan for this year,” Falace said.
Barnofsky and Miller are co-chairs of the Student Association’s activities coordination board, ACB.
“I had people coming up to me today and asking how they can get involved,” said Eve Barnofsky, a senior public relations and graphic design major. “I’m happy if I can bring awareness to the work ACB does,” Barnofsky said.
Various clubs and organizations came together to make the carnival possible.
“I helped organize getting other clubs involved in this event to help expand it,” education Sophomore and Vice President of Activities for the ACB, Ethan Wilder, said.
Campus groups in attendance ranged from Greek organizations, Coffeehouse, Red Zone, FENTS, the Office of Alumni Relations, Institutional Advancement and numerous ethnic clubs.
Activities and games were also a feature of the carnival. The brothers of Sigma Alpha Phi sacrificed their faces to “Phi a Brother,” which entailed paying $1 to connect a fraternity brother’s head with a paper plate of whipped cream. The sisters of Sigma Lambda Upsilon/Senoritas Latinas Sorority, Inc. eased tensions by hosting a stress ball toss. Anyone who reached 900 points got to keep a homemade stress ball.
“We used a refrigerator box for this game and just cut holes in it,” said Victoria Torres, a multimedia journalism and public relations major. “We painted and decorated everything ourselves. We made the stress balls out of balloons and filled one half with rice and the other with gravel. The gravel is softer.”
There was no shortage of food either. Tables were filled with desserts and cold treats. An entire table was devoted to toasting and creating s’mores from scratch. Students used one meal swipe to eat for the whole event, which also offered classic comfort food options such as curly fries, pizza, hot dogs and chicken fingers. CAS food trucks lined the path leading away from the courtyard, sending smells of fried foods into the air, only to be whipped around furiously by the wind.
“Campus Dining has set all the food up and have really come together with all the groups here to put on this great event,” Barnofsky said.
Nearly everyone screamed as the gusts whipped sand, gravel, clothing, hair and eventually tables through the air.
“The weather was definitely stressful,” Barnofsky said. “When the wind hit a certain speed, we couldn’t set tents up for safety reasons.”
The event continued its last half inside the dining hall. According to Barnofsky, activities resumed as normal, with the exception of spin art, which was too messy for indoor use. Some aspects, like the photo booth, turned out better inside than out in regards to the lighting.
“[Things] work out in strange ways,” Barnofsky said.
This event was an opportunity for students to unwind and enjoy themselves before they find themselves in the thick of finals week.
“[The carnival] brings people together in a different way,” Falace said. “It’s also a break from studying and all the stuff that comes before finals.”
Barnofsky said it best.
“Everyone has spring fever.”
Email Sage Lewandowski at news@cardinalpointsonline.com
