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Published on September 13, 2023
The Pride Center at Eastern provides a welcoming atmosphere during the Block Party.
Representation from Eastern's Intercultural Center at the Block Party
A local nonprofit organization tables at the Block Party.
The Student Center hosted a Block Party on Sept. 8, highlighting the resources and offerings of the Unity Wing, Student Government Association (SGA) and Office of Student Activities.
The Pride, Intercultural and Women’s Centers, all part of the Unity Wing, worked tirelessly for three hours so that students who associate with these groups were well-informed about the resources provided. The mission of the centers is to promote an inclusive and secure environment for students of all backgrounds, especially underrepresented groups.
To encourage foot traffic, students were given event passports for the different locations. If they got stamped for all the centers, they were entered into a raffle to win a gift basket of Eastern merchandise and a large squishmallow.
“Some people think they need to have a purpose to visit the Pride Center when they really don’t,” said Nicole Potestivo, coordinator. “I really think today helped remove some barriers.”
The Pride Center is devoted to creating a comfortable environment for all sexualities, orientations and gender identities. The Intercultural Center likewise welcomes students of differing cultural backgrounds with games and stickers.
“We love all the new faces because we think that’s relevant to promoting all cultures,” said one of the student coordinators. “I really feel we achieved that goal today.”
The Women’s Center showed female students the fun side of empowerment with a selfie wall and by making buttons decorated with quotes and images from feminist icons.
The Student Government Association (SGA) also asserted its presence. The SGA recently acquired a larger suite to conduct business. “We’ve gotten some high traffic, especially compared to last year,” commented a member of the Student Senate. "Especially with the new suite, we’ve gotten a lot of interest and it's great for telling people what we do here.”
Written by Elisabeth Craig