In fall 2019, UA’s Office of Student Involvement launched The Trunk, a resource and business center that helps UA’s registered student organizations by giving them access to new supplies and opportunities.
By Joey Blackwell
Amelia Brock, the assistant director of organization development for Student Involvement, oversees The Trunk, which is located in the Ferguson Student Center. The Source, which provides resources and support for student organizations, offers The Trunk Rewards Program, an incentive-based point system with points redeemable for The Trunk resources.
“Since I’ve been here, we’re always looking for new ways to support student organizations and figure out what their needs are and try to meet those needs as we can,” Brock said. “One of those ideas was The Trunk.”
Trunk items and supplies can be divided into four main categories: food machines such as popcorn, snow cones and cotton candy; electronic equipment such as speakers, microphones and projectors; event decorations such as balloons and centerpieces; and professional development tools like dry erase boards and easels.
Megan Phillips, a senior double-majoring in international relations and criminal justice, serves as an event consultant for The Trunk and assists student organizations with accessing needed supplies.
“I think that it provides a lot of opportunities for a lot of student organizations,” Phillips said. “Some student organizations don’t have large funds at their disposal… but we’re offering them a way to have supplies.”
Brock said that Trunk items are already in high demand, with the food machines and electronic equipment being the most popular items.
“We anticipate that the food machines will be the most popular,” Brock said. “They’re the ones that students talk about having the most interest in. Those and probably the speaker systems and the microphone. All of those are expensive items that students would have to rent somewhere and so if they can use the points system that we have instead of having to spend their money, I think that’s what will be really attractive.”
The Trunk also serves as a business center for student organizations, giving them the opportunity to develop their organizations through the use of computers and other resources such as printers.
“It’s basically things that a student organization can rent for their events whether they’re on campus or off campus,” Brock said.
The Trunk has been in development for quite some time, and many student groups have already accessed its offerings.
“UA students want to do the most and they want to do the best,” Brock said. “They often have questions about what resources we can provide them and so. after talking with so many students through that process, we saw that this could really fill that need that they were having.”
Phillips believes that The Trunk serves a unique purpose on campus and can not only help campus organizations’ events succeed, but can also assist as a recruiting tool.
“I think that a lot of what we’re doing is different than what a lot of other offices of campus can offer,” Phillips said. “We are offering them things that they can use to make their organization more appealing to people that they are trying to get to join.”
To learn more about The Trunk and UA’s student organizations, visit studentinvolvement.sa.ua.edu.