Students weaved through dozens of community service booths at Dickson Court North during the annual Servocacy Fest on Monday.
Attendees had the opportunity to explore more than 40 organizations and participated in activities such as trivia, making vision boards and spin-the-wheel at the Servocacy Fest, which was held by the Undergraduate Students Association Council’s Community Service Commission.
“It’s important to give back to the community, and especially when you have a community of people your age, it doesn’t seem as much of a chore,” said Zoe Andrews, a third-year environmental science student who attended the event.
The CSC chose organizations that focus on issues students are passionate about, such as breaking down barriers to higher education, mental health advocacy and increasing literacy rates, said Maya Gheewala, USAC’s Community Service commissioner.
Clubs such as UCLA Swipe Out Hunger, which allows students to donate unused meal swipes to people experiencing food insecurity, and the Expressive Movement Initiative, which provides free dance classes to children with disabilities, set up booths at the event.
The Servocacy Fest changed its location from Wilson Plaza to Dickson Court North this year, said Gheewala, a fourth-year public affairs and statistics and data science student.
Isaac Gonzalez, a third-year political science student from the Central Valley, said he took interest in the Central Valley Project at UCLA , a club that provides guidance to students who plan to pursue higher education.
Sarah Wong – the outreach director for Project Literacy, which provides free literacy tutoring for K-12 students and adults in Los Angeles – said tabling at a smaller event than UCLA’s Enormous Activities Fair provided attendees a calmer experience while exploring club options.
“People are more interested in trying to go from table to table in comparison to EAF, which is really really hectic,” said Wong, a second-year public affairs student. “All those tables, I think it can be very overwhelming for a lot of people, and you can get lost.”
More than 500 student organizations set up booths at the EAF, a three-hour event held at Dickson Plaza and Wilson Plaza annually on Sept. 22.
[Related: Bruins connect across majors and interests at Enormous Activities Fair]
Finding clubs and connections at UCLA can be difficult because of the university’s large size, said Danica Tubman, a third-year public affairs student who attended the event. However, each booth at the Servocacy Fest offered a different activity, which made the process more enjoyable, she added.
“It’s a more targeted EAF,” Gheewala said. “There’s a specific focus on service-oriented organizations and drawing together that community, and it’s a good way for all of us to connect.”
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