Rec Club shifts focus and revamps for spring

The USF Recreation Club (Rec Club) has made a presence on campus over the last few semesters with their monthly bonfires, slip-and-slides in the Quad and their annual spring break ski trip. This club made an effort to not only be inclusive to all students on campus, but also engage students in ways other clubs typically did not with outdoor activities. 

Like all the other clubs on campus, Rec Club also felt the budget cuts and had to adapt what their events looked like, which meant not attending their spring break trip. While this decision was made with heavy hearts, it opened up the door for Rec Club to introduce fresh club events for the spring semester. 

Sophomore Ben Donath is a Recreation and Sports Management (RSTM) major who took the initiative to take over as Rec Club President after their previous President graduated in the fall. Along with Donath a new executive board has been curated to help see these new ideas come to light. These new board members include: Director At-Large Hannah Linko, Finance Director Sully Minor, Events Director Lilia Hacker, Communications Director Camille McNichols and Social Media Director Aleks Antoszek.

With an almost entirely new board of people in charge of Rec Club there has been a noticeable shift in events being held. In January, the club held a game night social and an open ice skating event. The club plans to host more frequent events on campus, including their monthly bonfires, which have become a campus favorite. 

As the club continues to grow and build momentum, they are hoping to host a wider variety of events such as flag football, volleyball tournaments, open gym days, basketball tournaments and more. 

When the focus of their club budget shifted, and the spring break ski trip no longer consuming a large portion of their budget, Rec Club was trying to find ways to get students off campus and keep their fun flowing. Rec Club is currently working towards hosting bigger and more exciting outings such as attending Chicago sporting events, bowling, paintball and trips to Topgolf. 

Students who were anticipating attending the ski trip should not let their bubble burst yet. Rec Club’s Executive Board has been brainstorming ways to fundraise to bring back the spring break trip. Donath explained they hope that this is just a short hiatus for the beloved trip and with thoughtful planning it should be back for spring of 2027. 

Rec Club’s Executive Board and their dedicated club members are working hard to bring fresh ideas and events to the campus community this semester. To stay in the loop on upcoming events, students are encouraged to follow their Instagram (@rsmusf) and be on the look out for flyers on campus. 

Rec Club is one of the many examples of student-led clubs doing what they can to continue to be an outlet for students despite seeing budget cuts. Donath, along with his executive board are striving to make this pivot in an effort to continue to be an active club and bring fresh events to campus.