How UPC keeps students involved after First 56

Auburn University’s University Program Council will continue hosting social events on campus to keep students involved during the remainder of the fall semester.  

UPC held events during the first eight weeks of the fall semester, known as the First 56, to raise rapport among students, promote engagement and offer opportunities for first-year students to get involved on campus. The First 56 ran from Aug. 7 to Oct. 1, 2023.

Cole Wheeler, junior in professional flight, is a part of the Tiger Nights and Special Events committees in the council. Wheeler spoke about his start with UPC and the goals of the First 56.

“I was on the Tiger Nights committee, then I was director of Tiger Nights and now this year, I’m over Tiger Nights as their [vice president],” Wheeler said. “UPC is all about having students make connections. I feel like that’s the goal of the First 56. We’re all about helping freshmen and transfer students make those connections; that’s UPC’s biggest goal, even outside of the First 56.”

Signature events of the First 56 include convocation, the fall concert and Waffles with Woodard. The organization also holds special events such as sushi making and group painting. When special events aren’t being held, the council holds events like a showing of a movie or War Eagle watch parties.

Not all the signature events held by the council occur during the First 56. For instance, the holiday lighting on Samford Lawn is held during November. The movie in the stadium, held in Plainsman Park, is typically held two weeks after the First 56 is over.

“UPC has year-round events as well that we also try to emphasize for students. Signature events mostly don’t even happen in the First 56, but we do have a lot of fun events like Rolling on the Plains that do happen in the First 56,” Wheeler said.

Outside of the First 56, the council has Tiger Nights events. These events are late night events that occur once or twice each month on Thursdays or Fridays. A notable Tiger Nights event is the Fall Festival, which occurs the week after the First 56 is over and marks the end of midterm week. Wheeler spoke about his inspiration for the Fall Festival and how it came to be on campus.

“I went to the fair in Montgomery, and it inspired me to bring something like that to Auburn,” Wheeler said. “So for the Fall Festival, I made an effort to get big attractions like the Ferris Wheel or the zipline just to bring that feeling to the Plains.”

The Fall Festival has other coordinators besides UPC, and other student organizations can find ways to implement themselves into the event to encourage students to get involved with their program as well. 

While the First 56 has been around since 2021, UPC has been around longer. Before the First 56, UPC had been keeping students involved in their community year-round as they do now. 

“The First 56 came after UPC, so we already had our year-round program, and then the First 56 came around, and then we made an effort to have a ton of events during those eight weeks. We rely on campus partners and organizations to help us make that happen,” Wheeler said.

As for their year-round schedule, the council is making efforts to have multiple events a month for students to come together. 

“We’ve been trying to reevaluate how we schedule things. It used to be two things a month, every month, which ends up kind of being a lot for some committees,” Wheeler said. “I personally try to set the goal of twice a month, but it’s OK if they don’t reach that goal.”

Wheeler encouraged students to have fun with their involvement at the university but also reminded them not to join too many organizations at once, so they can have a balance of work and their social lives. 

“Don’t overwhelm yourself. Don’t go crazy with joining organizations. Joining a bunch of organizations can take up a bunch of your time," Wheeler said. "I’m speaking from experience – but I say join two to begin with, one for fun and the other for professional reasons.”