The Residence Halls Association hosted a lively carnival full of games, food, and activities for residents to get to know each other on Sept. 7.
The event began at 5 p.m. in Brewer Station at the Mizzou Rec. It was originally scheduled for Aug. 31 at the the corner of Rollins St. and College Ave. However, that morning Residential Life sent out an email, postponing the RHA Carnival to Sept. 7 due to weather.
There was an inflatable obstacle course, arts and crafts table, DJ booth, carnival games and an assortment of foods. Attendees also had their choice of carnival snacks: popcorn, cotton candy and snow cones.
“We’ve been planning this since March of this year, so it’s taken about five or so months” RHA president Nathan Dare said. “It’s been a really good project we’ve had a lot of people working on it. It’s come together very nicely, and even despite the weather, it’s turned out awesome.”
Attendees had the option to race in the inflatable obstacle course, paint miniature canvases, or just socialize with their friends. Students from freshmen to seniors, as well as faculty attended the carnival.
“The free food and the people were cool,” sophomore Kody Hopen said. “I also liked the obstacle course. If you didn’t have friends there or aren’t extroverted you probably wouldn’t have enjoyed it.”
RHA puts on several events throughout the year to bring residents together and build a sense of community around the MU campus.
“Our original goal for the carnival is to get everyone out and create a huge sense of community,” Dare said. “That’s what this truly is. We want to get residents out her to interact with one another and try to create memories. We decided that smaller events have a smaller impact so we’re going to try to continue this large programing trend.”
One of the other events that RHA puts on is Tiger Walk, an event where freshmen walk through the columns toward Jesse Hall, symbolizing their entrance into the university. This is followed by an event at the end of senior year where graduates walk away from Jesse Hall, symbolizing their departure from the university.
Aside from planning events on campus, Dare said RHA’s goal is to serve as an advocate for students.
“What our goal is to basically advocate for the residents who live here on campus, whether it be if they see injustices within their halls themselves, if they have issues with how the Department of Residential Life is handling things, that’s where we kind of step in and get the student voice a say,” Dare said. “In terms of administration, when they have new policies in mind they try to run it through us first.”
_Edited by Caitlyn Rosen | crosen@themaneater.com_