For many students, college is about finding their own special place on campus, but for some, it’s hard to know exactly where that is. And it was that very struggle that inspired Ron Bucholz, director of the Career and Leadership Development to create the Student Involvement Fair over thirty years ago.

“In 1984 UW-Whitewater didn’t offer a student organization or involvement fair,” said Bucholz. “And since I witnessed first-hand how effective this sort of event could be in connecting students, I started the fair at UWW in either 1985 or 1986.”

Since then, both the spring and fall involvement fairs, which are put on collaboratively by the Career & Leadership Development, Student Involvement & Internships Office and the Whitewater Student Government, have continued to help students and organizations alike find their perfect match.

And though the purpose and end goal are the same, there remain a few differences between the two events.

According to Kimberly Clarksen, the assistant director of the Career and Leadership Development, those differences lie in the location and size of the event.

The spring fair is in the Hamilton room instead of outside like the fall fair and only has about 70 booths instead of 150.

Despite the differences, both fairs are seen as a success by various staff members around campus.

“I think both the fall and spring involvement fairs are beneficial because they help students see all of the different opportunities that the campus has to offer,” said Jenny Fisco, the marketing coordinator for the James R. Connor University Center.  “A lot of the student orgs and departments that have tables at these fairs students might not know about, so I think it’s a good opportunity on both sides.”

For students looking to get involved this spring, the 2019 spring Involvement Fair is currently rescheduled for this Thursday, February 6th from 10 a.m to 2 p.m.