The University Program Council (UPC) will be hosting their annual silent disco night on Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. in the Student Union Ballroom.
A silent disco is an increasingly popular event that colleges can host where students get the opportunity to listen to music through rechargeable, multi-channel headphones. Students have three options when it comes to the channels they can choose to listen to. These channels are controlled by members of UPC.
The COVID-19 school policy will be enforced during the event.
“Silent Disco night is kind of like an event we want to bring to students before finals week, to enjoy the atmosphere while still being safe in the comfort of others as well,” Breana Stander, one of the entertainment coordinators for UPC, said.
According to Stander, the most effective way to ensure everyone gets a chance to participate in the event is with the shift system they have in place. Students will go in during a certain shift-time and once that time is up, the next round of students will be allowed in.
They will use colorized bands to help distinguish who belongs on what shift. After each shift, members of UPC will sanitize and charge the headphones for the next person.
Although some complications might come up such as some students not being able to come in with their friends during the same shift, UPC members plan to create an environment for everyone to still enjoy themselves.
According to Stander, if someone is alone or feeling uncomfortable, it’s up to the UPC staff members to engage with that person and try to create a fun space.
“Our staff’s responsibility is to make sure that everyone’s comfortable,” Stander said.
UPC encourages students to give feedback on events like UPC’s Silent Disco in order to see what type of activities students like and dislike.
Stander said whether it’s more neon lights or changes to the music, UPC will continue to improve what’s needed to create events for the students.
According to Stander, the staff are working to have the event every semester, however, because it is one of the most requested, they don’t want to exhaust it too much to where students are no longer excited for it.
“We don’t want to have too many silent discos in one semester or in a one-year setting,” Stander said, “We don’t want it to be played out being that it’s such a popular event, and people actually do enjoy it.”
In order to get into the event, students will need their Ragin’ Cajun card to get credits for participating.