With Capilano’s small campus and small class sizes, one would assume that being a student here would come with feelings of comfort and acceptance. However, with no residence, no real communal gathering spot (such as a pub) and our newly acquired university status, the Capilano Glee Club found that university could use a bit more joy in the hallways.
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| Illustration by Lydia Fu |
As their name suggests, the club is about promoting joy. Founded last year by two Global Stewardship students, Robyn Mitchell and Alicia Parker-Sutton, it aims to spread happiness throughout the Capilano campus. Although the club risks coming off as corny, they maintain that everyone, particularly highly-pressured students, could use a bit more optimism in their everyday lives. With projects like Christmas toy drives and visits to the old folks home, the Glee Club is out to create a positive and inclusive social atmosphere for Capilano University.
First of all, why is it called the Glee Club? It is not a singing and dancing group, or a gathering of people who enjoy the popular television show Glee. As it turns out, the name was chosen last year, and doesn’t have any sort of connection to the show, though it may be responsible for increased interest in the club.
First of all, why is it called the Glee Club? It is not a singing and dancing group, or a gathering of people who enjoy the popular television show Glee. As it turns out, the name was chosen last year, and doesn’t have any sort of connection to the show, though it may be responsible for increased interest in the club.
Even though they have not yet been holding regular meetings this year, the founders have a lot of enthusiasm for the club. “Lots of people want to join; we’ve got lots of support for it,” Parker-Sutton assures. “Mostly people in the Global Stewardship program have shown interest.”
The club is active, but loosely organized. “Because of busy schedules,” explains Parker-Sutton, “we’ve yet to have a meeting this semester. We plan on having a small event each semester. There are lots of ideas, but it’s hard to follow through.”
For a Glee Club though, they don’t feel overly optimistic about changing the collective attitude of Capilano. The idea sprung from the feeling that Capilano wasn’t as welcoming as it could be. “There’s nothing at Cap, no real university life. People stick to themselves and we wanted to change that and become more inclusive.” One major roadblock outlined by the founders was the lack of residence and social outlets on campus. One concern was that “we’re still like a college, even though it’s a university now.”
How, then, does a campus life start and thrive? As Alicia suggests, “The only way to change the mood is to join a bunch of clubs and be involved, but that can be hard with lots of courses.” The Glee Club is more of an idea than an interest-oriented club and was intended to be about spreading a feeling, a difficult goal that can’t always be seen or appreciated.
The vision of a school where people are friendly, interested in extra-curricular activities and supportive of each other is one that most people can get behind. While some Capilano students hold on to the commuter college mentality, there are people out there that want to make the most of their time here. The idea of spreading a positive attitude is easy to carry out. Even if a heavy course load restricts you from joining clubs, it doesn’t take any extra time to say hello in the hallways, or chat a bit at the bus stop. Who couldn’t use some laughter induced endorphins every once in a while? That is the goal that Glee Club is working towards.
The club is active, but loosely organized. “Because of busy schedules,” explains Parker-Sutton, “we’ve yet to have a meeting this semester. We plan on having a small event each semester. There are lots of ideas, but it’s hard to follow through.”
For a Glee Club though, they don’t feel overly optimistic about changing the collective attitude of Capilano. The idea sprung from the feeling that Capilano wasn’t as welcoming as it could be. “There’s nothing at Cap, no real university life. People stick to themselves and we wanted to change that and become more inclusive.” One major roadblock outlined by the founders was the lack of residence and social outlets on campus. One concern was that “we’re still like a college, even though it’s a university now.”
How, then, does a campus life start and thrive? As Alicia suggests, “The only way to change the mood is to join a bunch of clubs and be involved, but that can be hard with lots of courses.” The Glee Club is more of an idea than an interest-oriented club and was intended to be about spreading a feeling, a difficult goal that can’t always be seen or appreciated.
The vision of a school where people are friendly, interested in extra-curricular activities and supportive of each other is one that most people can get behind. While some Capilano students hold on to the commuter college mentality, there are people out there that want to make the most of their time here. The idea of spreading a positive attitude is easy to carry out. Even if a heavy course load restricts you from joining clubs, it doesn’t take any extra time to say hello in the hallways, or chat a bit at the bus stop. Who couldn’t use some laughter induced endorphins every once in a while? That is the goal that Glee Club is working towards.
//Evelyn Cranston
Writer
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