The Campus Activities Board (CAB) at Francis Marion University (FMU) hosted the Monday Mixer in the Smith University Center (UC) on Aug. 22. This event kicked off Welcome Week, which provided incoming students the opportunity to meet and mingle with other students on campus.  

While the members of CAB brainstorm and plan for the event, their advisor Amanda Wagner guides their vision. Her role is to grant them access to the resources they need to create a successful event.  

“My overall hope for the event was for many students, especially those new to campus, to have a relaxing Monday before they got into their classes for the week,” Wagner said.  

Wagner worked alongside CAB executive chair Antonio Pearson to create the Monday Mixer.  

“As the Executive Chair on the Campus Activities Board, I pretty much serve as the president of the organization,” Pearson said. “My primary responsibility and overall role is to ensure that the entire board is meeting their goals and mission. I also preside over all meetings of the board throughout the year.”  

While Pearson and Wagner worked closely together on the event, Pearson, representing the student body, had other responsibilities, along with planning the event.  

“My role for the Monday Mixer was listening to the feedback from the board members to see what they wanted to have at the event while also implementing those ideas,” Pearson said. “I also delegated certain tasks to members [of CAB] throughout the night to make sure things run smoothly.”  

Events of this magnitude require extensive planning, and Pearson said CAB planned the event during the summer months to ensure the reality of the event matched with the vision of the event.  

“We had a meeting over summer break to discuss this event, as well as all of the events for the entire semester,” Pearson said. “And the week before the event, the board discussed all the games and events they wanted to have available at the event. A good amount of planning went into this event such as meetings, putting in space requests, setting up and also cleaning up when everything was over.”  

With food trucks, inflatables, and multiple games that all required different sets of skills, students were drawn to the party.   

Julie Martincova, senior human resources and sports management major, a native of Liberez, Czech Republic, agreed that the event was great for incoming freshmen as well as foreign students.  

“If you are scared to meet new people, the Monday Mixer is a great place to meet more people,” Martincova said. “I think the food trucks really attract a lot of people because it brings something different and everyone loves food.”  

The Monday Mixer was just the beginning for CAB events this fall.  

“We have a lot planned this year, so I am super excited to see everyone enjoy our other events,” Pearson said. “We will have a lot of giveaways, so make sure you don’t miss it.”