Union Board begins a new century of service to unite student groups

It’s the largest student programming organization on campus, it serves as a governing body and helps to program some of the biggest events at IU.

Founded in 1909 with the purpose of uniting student organizations on campus, Union Board will be swearing in its 101st board on Saturday.

“We are the first board in a century of Union Board,” said sophomore Dan Haddad, Union Board’s newest director of comedy. “It’s going to be big.”

The 16 new directors, which include junior Sean Liston as president, returned from a retreat last weekend with a new mission statement.

Liston said this new mission statement emphasizes the importance of diversity, creativity and the development of intellectual and personal growth as they uphold the traditions of the board.

“It’s the perfect statement of who we are as a whole,” said junior Shannon Cook, the new outreach director. “It’s everything that each one of us wants to bring to the board and students.”

Following in his father’s footsteps by joining Union Board his freshman year, Liston will be sworn in as the board’s president.

“We try to provide programs that stimulate the intellectual and personal growth for students on campus,” Liston said.

Haddad said he joined Union Board after attending a call-out meeting in September and began participating in the comedy committee. He said he enjoys the board because it is a tradition that can reach a lot of students.

“There are a lot of misconceptions about what Union Board really is,” said Haddad. “Everyone is automatically in because it’s the students’ union.”

Junior Clare Marshall agreed. She said she joined because she was looking for extracurricular activities that would give her experience in her journalism major. After attending last September’s call-out meeting, she joined the public relations committee. Now, as one of the board’s directors, she said she has plans.

“I hope to implement one or two philanthropic events for the committee to support or become active with,” she said. “It’s important that all members feel like they are doing something.”

As vice president of membership, Marshall is in charge of not just recruiting new members, but of keeping those already active interested in the organization. She said she plans to make sure that “members feel valued.”

Union Board not only works with students as a whole, but also plays a big role in many organizations on campus. As a funding board, the board helps collaborate with other organizations who want to hold events for the campus that may be financially out of their reach.

Haddad said the board wants to collaborate with students and create events they can both be proud of.

“I want to bring people who would never see themselves working together,” Cook said.

She added she is a promoter of diversity and an advocate for awareness. Her decision to become the outreach director came from the job description; the position requires a strong personality and an enthusiasm to collaborate.

Cook said Union Board was founded on the idea of creating unity amongst organizations.

“There are so many small organizations who work with HIV awareness,” she said. “They can come together here.”

The board, which meets weekly to plan events and collaborations, encourages students and organizations to participate in the planning.

“You’ll be surprised at what Union Board can do for you as a group and, more importantly, as a student,” Haddad said.