Maria Villalpando

The African American Student Alliance welcomed back students with its annual kickback event. Thomas Allison, Mark Camolleri and Chris Perry were among the students enjoying the event that featured a club-like atmosphere. Students from the University of La Verne, Claremont Colleges and Cal Poly Pomona attended the event in Davenport on Oct. 19.

Andres Rivera
Managing Editor

When the last meal was served at Davenport, the dinning hall transformed into a club atmosphere acceptable for students from surrounding schools to come and show support for the African American Student Alliance on Oct. 19.

Despite a slow start the annual AASA kickback was a successful night.

“It’s fun, it takes your mind away from studying,” Angela Daniels, a junior chemistry major, said. “It’s very important for you to interact with peers and different people.”

Earlier in the night attendance was small with a couple of people dancing and chatting in groups inside while others spent some time to cool off outside within ear’s length of the music.

As the night progressed larger groups of people made their appearance at the kickback forming small lines outside Davenport.

“It started off a little slow but the turn out was fine,” Ashley Joseph, AASA president, said. “There was way over 100 people.”

When AASA hosts these kickbacks they usually attract guests from Cal Poly Pomona and Claremont Colleges as well as fraternities and sororities from the Divine Nine – a group of Greek organizations that are historically black Greek letter organizations.

This time, however, students from Los Angeles City College and Northridge found their way to the event, Joseph said.

“I want to support AASA,” said Amber-Rose Howard, a junior speech communications and creative writing major. “It’s a fun way to socialize with everyone.”

Upon entering Davenport, students passed by a table where AASA members asked participants to place donations in a box before taking in the atmosphere. The donations gathered by the event will help the club in getting club T-shirts.

The club has been without shirts for two years, Joseph said. The club plans on paying for half and the students pay for the other half. By the end of the night, the club had raised $190 for T-shirts.

AASA will be watching “Waiting to Exhale” on Nov. 7, and will be staying busy with their next chance for students to take a break from studying on Nov. 15 for the annual social and dinner.

AASA general meetings are held at 6 p.m. on Thursdays in the West Dining Room.

Andres Rivera can be reached at arivera3@ulv.edu.