Jan. 15 consisted of lots of pizza, lots of music and lots of paint. Once again, the annual Block Painting Party was in full swing at NSU.
Organizations and clubs woke up early on a Sunday morning, drove (or walked) to the Alvin Sherman Library quad wearing “stainable” clothes and painted a block.
This tradition originated back in 2004 when there was a pathway leading from the Goodwin residence hall to Founder’s, Farquhar and Vettel residence halls, said Sean Pepin, assistant director of Student Affairs. Once the Commons residence hall was built, the “party” moved to the pathway leading from the Don Taft University Center to the Parker Building.
Pepin said the Block Painting Party usually kicks off Homecoming Week because it’s a huge component of school spirit, but last semester it got rained out. This year it was held in January to kick off Unity Week.
Nearly 70 groups signed up to paint a block for their organization, club or group. When Pepin started at NSU three years ago, there were only 40 organizations. Now there are 92 and the 48 blocks from the UC to Parker didn’t fit all the groups. Because of this, they added “Greek row” which runs from the Parker Building to the library.
Gina Mercanti, graduate assistant for student organizations, said, “I think it’s cool to have [the Greeks] there because it shows unity between the Greek organizations themselves and sets them apart.”
Kelly Harrison, freshman pre-nursing major, a member of Sigma Delta Tau, said, “You get to see a little bit of what each one does, and I think it shows some strong points that each of the sororities and fraternities have. It’s definitely a good way to show Greek pride.”
The groups chose four colors to paint their block. Mercanti said each of their blocks help showcase what they want to do for the year, help them make a mark on the campus and identify themselves among the other groups.
Lileh Whitmore, sophomore marine biology major and member of Society of Anime, Games and Entertainment, hopes people will check out her organization because of their block.
“There are a lot of noticeable images on our block and we hope people look at it and say ‘I like this. I know what this is or I want to find out more about this,’” she said.
Mercanti said, “It’s kind of a recruitment tool backwards.”
First, second and third places prizes were awarded based on creativity, attention to detail, NSU spirit, organization pride and neatness. The winners for the Inter-Organizational Council were Pre-Dental (1st place), Society of Anime, Games and Entertainment (2nd place) and the Caribbean Student Association (3rd place). Razor’s Edge also got the honorable mention award for non-IOC groups.
Mercanti said this tradition is unique because it gives organizations a chance to exemplify who they are, what they do on campus and why they’re around.
“All the organizations are so different. They serve different purposes and have different missions, so this is a way for them to express that,” she said.
