By Amy Megill

Most colleges have these but are unaware of how much work they do. They are the backbone to all student activities and are called program councils. Those in Program Council are the worker ants of the school. Councils range in sizes, and even the best run around in a frenzy when making sure everything is right for an activity. Sam Houston State University's Program Council is well staffed and offers many unique activities each year for students. It works with many other groups and also university staff to present a wide variety of events. New events are regularly added, but there are several annual events that students can always count on.

Program Council, a division of Student Activities at Sam Houston, is a student-run organization devoted to creating distinct programs that encourage leadership and life skills through interaction among the student body. While the council is a fun organization in which to participate, Program Council holds itself to its defined values. Through all the events, Program Council strives to maintain and encourage balance, learning, perspective, student focus, and teamwork.

Program Coordinator Tiffany Flenoy has an interesting perspective on what the program council's events bring to Sam Houston's students. She is one of the most acquainted with the program council's annual events and knows first-hand which ones attract the most students. One of the biggest hits, in her educated opinion, is Welcome Week each fall semester.

“In the fall we welcome students back to campus with Welcome Week, which is actually about two weeks rather than one week! We have different events planned almost every day. Those events range from helping the students get moved onto campus, to drive in movies, student organization fairs, pool parties and even leadership programs,” Flenoy said.

Of course, there are organizations other than Program Council that keep students active and involved. Vice President for Student Services Frank Parker encourages students to keep their options open to all organizations.
“While we agree that academics should be your first priority, we encourage you to be active in one or more of the 230 organizations at SHSU and to participate in special events throughout the year,” Parker said.
Ultimately, Program Council is still THE organization with the most events and biggest variety of activities. Its workers feel confident about its lasting ability.

“We have several annual events that attract a fairly high number of students. I think the attraction with some of these programs remains in the fact that they’re traditional programs and the interest builds every year,” Flenoy said. “Almost as soon as Welcome Week is over, we start our next big program initiative, Bearkat Alley (tailgating). Although tailgating may sound like a small endeavor, it takes three departments to arrange the event. Every home football game, and even a few away games, Student Activities, the department of athletics, and the alumni office work together to coordinate special events. We arrange for bands to play, face-painters, game day T-shirts, inflatable, carnival style games, and much more; all free to anyone who comes to the tailgate area. This year we also took two buses full of students to Nacogdoches for the SFA game. Bearkat Alley also helps promote Bearkat spirit and we are definitively proud to be a part of that venture. I know some of the attraction with this program is the collaboration with other departments. When our department co-sponsors an event, we’re able to reach a broader audience because we have multiple hands working on one task for a common goal.”

Bearkat Alley is definitely one of the biggest series of events that Program Council puts together every year. Designated organizations and departments camp out in front of the north side of Bowers Stadium, cook for students, and have giveaways. October is Homecoming, where the game is more important than in high school but the crowning of the king and queen is less important. The whole week of Homecoming is busy with Kickoff Rally, nightly entertainment, more tailgating, and the big football game.

“After students return from the Thanksgiving holidays is our Annual Tree of Light celebration. This year is the 87th year we’ve done Tree of Light,” Program Council member Chuck Collins said. Next is the spring semester, which has just as many activities. “One of our largest programs in the spring semester is the Sammys. The Sammys is an award ceremony for outstanding student leaders on campus. This ceremony is probably one of the most prestigious award ceremonies the university has to offer. An outstanding student leader from each academic college receives an award and awards are also given to faculty, staff and student organizations that have made influential differences within the past academic year,” Flenoy said.

Program Council does face its share of problems. The biggest, noted by Program Council members, is adding changes and variety to annual programs and adding new programs. Since the university grows more each year and the student population becomes more diverse, the programs must keep up with the students’ needs and changes.

One thing that most students probably don’t consider is how Program Council gets its funding to create so many activities and produce giveaways. Since students don’t usually have to pay for anything up-front, the money has to come from somewhere. Students do pay, in a way. When students pay for their tuition and fees, one of the fees covers Student Services. Program Council receives a portion of that fee, and that provides the needed funds for programs.

Since Program Council has been around long enough to build its reputation and provide annual events that students come to look forward to, its members have been able to see the benefits and positive outcomes that come from having such a variety of events.

“Our events provide students with not only a social network but also the ability to gain a variety of leadership qualities. Even though we do traditional programming every semester, we also offer several additional opportunities for participation. Program Council sponsors at least 1-2 programs a week . . . . As a department, we strive to cultivate intellectual and holistic growth among a diverse student body in a fun and safe environment by promoting academic success and leadership development to encourage students to become productive members of society. We also support the university's mission by providing services and programs while fostering student learning both in and out of the classroom,” Flenoy said.

There you have it – an in-depth look at Sam Houston’s Program Council and some of the annual events it offers. Anyone can join Program Council, and there’s always something to do and something else to look forward to.