Residence Hall Program Board Events Promote Campus Involvement
To remind students of the importance of getting college experience outside of the classroom, RHPB hosts several performers and entertainers each semester.
(Photograph Courtesy of Mitaya Collins)
The crowd at E.J. Thomas Performing Arts Hall during a RHPB 9:09 event in 2018.
September 10, 2019
The Residence Hall Program Board is a student organization at The University of Akron that sponsors several entertainment events and activities for the campus community.
While their list of events includes those sponsored with Residence Hall Council, such as “Stuff a Roo,” SAMs Rock Alike and Late Night Study Break, a favorite among the members are the 7:17 and 9:09 series.
These events are open to all students at UA. However, they are primarily advertised to those living in one of the residence halls as one goal is to give those students a fun study break outside of their dorm rooms.
Junior Sienna McArthur; a strategic and organizational communication major, as well as the current president of RHPB, said these events are the organizations way of helping students receive the full college experience.
“The college culture so often emphasizes constant studying and not really any other involvement,” McArthur said. “But we also recognize that involvement on campus outside of the classroom is just as essential as what we learn in the classroom.”
During the hypnotist performances, students from the crowd will often be asked to participate.
The first 9:09 event at UA was Psychic Magician Craig Karges in 1995 and the 7:17 events began ten years later as a way to provide another activity earlier in the night.
Typically, there are three 9:09 and three 7:17 events each semester. Although two of the events in this series have passed, a few more are still set to occur throughout the rest of the semester.
Last semester, performers included singer-songwriter Nelly’s Echo, spoken word artist the Asia Project, singer Selkii and several more.
RHPB originally had to reschedule the performance of singer Selkii as she was filming the most recent season of The Voice.
RHPB’s Historian Mitaya Collins, a junior anthropology and psychology major, said all students should attend at least one of the events in the series as there are different forms of entertainment for everyone.
For this semester, Collins was most excited about the 9:09 featuring Hypnotist Michael C. Anthony, who performed on Sept. 10 in the E.J. Thomas Performing Arts Hall.
“Watching my friends being hypnotized just never gets old,” Collins said. “It’s also one of the best shows to capture some very exciting images.”
On the other hand, McArthur is looking forward to the first 7:17 of the semester on Oct. 16 featuring singer Olivia Farabaugh, who was a contestant on season ten of The Voice.
As 7:17s are part of RHPB’s Coffee House series, the “first 100 people to attend will also receive a free coffee/tea Starbucks coupon,” McArthur said.
Students looking to get involved with RHPB can join one of their three committees and should email McArthur at [email protected]. Additional opportunities to fill positions will be available by application in the Spring.
The Asia Project performed in the Jean Hower Taber Student Union Starbucks in March 2019.
“Whether it is a hysterical comedian, a rhythmic spoken word artist, or a mind-blowing hypnotist, RHPB brings a little bit of everything to campus,” McArthur said. “We want students to leave having felt something deeper than just being an attendee.”
