Lauren Didio, vice president of the Anthropology Club, desires unique input from students on campus when the club hosts its Darwin Day event on Wednesday, Feb. 12, in order to recognize the influence Charles Darwin had on their lives.
“Charles Darwin had such a huge impact on everything; Medicine, all the science areas and even religion, he had such a huge impact,” she said. “We just want students to come and present how it’s impacted their lives.”
The event, which fittingly occurs on Darwin’s birthday, occurs every spring semester, with PowerPoint presentations and videos usually documenting his entire life and his famous writings, such as the “Origin of Species.”
Aspiring to make the event bigger, the Anthropology Club changed the location of the event, which was usually held the in the typical club meeting place in Room SS315, and moved it in the Teleconference Center, and then seeks to have more student creativity involved.
“(The students) can write poems or something like that,” Didio said. “It doesn’t have to be straight-up with some note cards or a PowerPoint, you can get really creative with it. We just want to make it a fun learning experience.”
The submission deadline for students is Friday, Feb. 7, and one can participate in the event by attending one of the Anthropology Club meetings, which are every Tuesday at 11 a.m. in SS315, or email the club president, Ryan Morrison.
Nathalie Pardo, business administration major, said, “The fact that we’re opening it up not just to the Anthropology Club, but bringing it to other departments, like the English department, will really help not just us, but other students understand that this is not just about religion or science…It’s a good way to find that middle-ground and realize that there are other ways that people see things.
“Doing it bigger and better this year is a good way for not just our clubs together, but people at school together and open their minds to different ideals.”
“The Anthropology Club is very open, and I think that’s really what we’re all about,” Didio said. “We want to create an environment that is very welcoming to everybody. You don’t even have to be an anthropology major, you don’t even have to know what it is, just show up, and we’re all a very fun, great group of people who want to have that sense of camaraderie.”
