A new club designed to help students find their people and their passion
- Laurie D. Babcock
- News
- Contributors: Laurie Babcock and Cadence Bakker, Photos
6 – minute read
At a recent meeting of a new student organization, Vincent Belier tells everyone to grab a plastic bag. Inside the bag is a small ball of red yarn, a QR code and a wooden craft needle. Someone asks if they’re crochet or knitting needles, which prompts someone else to ask if there’s a difference.
“Crochet uses one needle, knitting uses two,” says Chelsea Novo. She would know — Novo is the president of the Yarn Club at FGCU, a student organization devoted to the fiber arts. She’s here at the invitation of Belier, president of Branch Out FGCU, a new club that helps Eagles find student organizations that match their passions.
“FGCU is home to a variety of amazing groups based around tons of unique hobbies and interests,” according to the Branch Out FGCU description on EagleLink, FGCU’s platform to help students find organizations and events. With myriad possibilities, finding the right fit can quickly become intimidating.
Branch Out FGCU aims to help Eagles by introducing them to a wide variety of campus clubs. They invite officers like Novo from other student groups to attend each meeting and give a presentation, opening up membership by bringing multiple clubs to one meeting time and place each week.
In addition to Yarn Club, Novo belongs to the Dominican Republic Outreach Program, Mindful Living Club and Improv Club. The senior psychology major started crocheting in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, when, like many people with extra time on their hands, she picked up a new hobby. When Eagles returned to in-person classes later that year, a group of classmates inspired her to join the Yarn Club.
She calls crocheting and knitting “functional hobbies” — meaning many practical problems can be fixed by yarn. “Table unbalanced? Make leg boots. That sandal gave you a blister? Make a pad so it doesn’t rub. Need a cute accessory? Give me 15 minutes, and I got you. It’s saved me multiple times,” Novo says.
At the Branch Out FGCU meeting, she teaches a basic crochet square knot to the gathered members.
“This is a very cutesy thing to do, this is very demure. Just with that one stitch, you can make a friendship bracelet,” Novo says to Manda Singh.
Singh is a junior majoring in forensic science. In addition to Branch Out, she’s a member of the Forensics Club and the Asian Student Association — and she’s president of the FGCU Paranormal Association. The student organization positions itself as “a home for ghost lovers, horror movie buffs, avid explorers, those who count down the days to Halloween starting in July and everybody in between.”
Like Yarn Club, the Paranormal Association has its own tools of the trade: Ouija boards, dowsing rods, a pendulum, flashlights and electromagnetic field readers. Members also use a spirit box and an REM pod, two paranormal investigation tools used to detect sounds and electromagnetic energy changes. The organization welcomes paranormal fans and skeptics to meet and talk about unexplained phenomena and share the paranormal with the greater community. Singh presented about her organization at another Branch Out meeting.
Her interest in the paranormal started during high school after watching the show “Ghost Whisperer” and ghost-hunting videos on social media platforms.
“When I came to FGCU, I finally got the chance to learn more about the paranormal and join in on ghost-hunting investigations,” she says. Club members participate in ghost hunts and visit supposedly haunted locations. “Our focus is on fostering curiosity, building friendships and enjoying the adventure of discovering the unknown together.”
“I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve been talking to someone about a club only for them to say, ‘Wow, I wish I would’ve known sooner that this existed,’” says Belier. The founding president of Branch Out FGCU, he is a junior majoring in business management. He says most students can only name a few of the university’s registered student organizations. “And on top of the lack of awareness, actually trying out clubs by running around to different locations and times while also managing schoolwork can quickly become overwhelming.”
Branch Out FGCU meetings are held at a fixed place and time each semester and feature a different club each week, allowing attendees to learn new activities and meet new people on a consistent basis.
“Our faculty advisor, Kristine Tullo, has done plenty of research showing that student involvement directly impacts academic performance for the better. Finding your people and passions can develop you into your best self, and there’s a good chance it’ll raise your grades as well,” Belier says.
FGCU’s Organizations and Student Involvement office also helps Eagles connect and engage with the campus community through Programming Board, Student Government and more than 165 registered student organizations. Those organizations saw 7,100 unique individuals attend 2,800 club events this fall alone.
“Students are usually involved in more than one club. Our office philosophy is ‘student’ is the first word in student leader,” says Kelsey O’Brien, assistant director for student organizations and programming.
Eagles can learn more about registered organizations on EagleLink and use the filter feature under “groups” to search categories such as service or sports. Or they can attend a Branch Out FGCU meeting. Belier and the other officers are happy to have more members.