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Outside-the-classroom Learning Makes a Big
Difference Putting a bunch of college students in charge of a $ 300,000 Dance Marathon, fundraiser sure lysounds a bit risky. When you consider the fact that the money is supposed to be given to. Children in need of medical care, you might call the idea crazy. Most student leaders don't want to spend a large amount of time on something they care little a bout, said 22-year-old University of Florida student Darren Heitner. He was the Dance Marathon's operations officer for two years. Yvonne Fangmeyer, director of the student organization office at the University of Wisconsin, conducted a survey in February of students involved in campus organizations. She said the desire for friendship was the most frequently cited reason for joining. At large universities like Fangmeyer's, which has more than 40,000 students, the students first of all want to find a way to "belong in their own comer of campus". Katie Rowley, a Wisconsin senior, confirms the survey's findings. "I wanted to make the cam pus feel smaller by joining an organization where I could not only get involved on campus but also find a group of friends. " All of this talk of friendship, however, does not mean that students aren't thinking about their resumes. "I think that a lot of people do join to ' fatten up their resume' ," said Heitner. "At the beginning of my college career, I joined a few of these organizations, hoping to get a start in my leadership roles. " But without passion student leaders can have a difficult time trying to weather the storms that come. For example, in April, several student organizations at Wisconsin teamed up for an event de signed to educate students about homelessness and poverty. Student leaders had to face the problem of solving disagreements, moving the event because of rainy weather, and dealing with the university's complicated bureaucracy. "Outside-of the classroom learning really makes a big difference. " Fangmeyer said. |