\u201cIt is our aim to keep students engaged and informed,\u201d said Assistant Director of Student Activities and Leadership Development Teneia Wooten.<\/p>\n Students can receive a stamp card at OSA, USG or \u201c30 in 30\u201d events to record attendance. The office said it already sees a positive impact. It gave out more than 800 cards, and Wooten said some students have passed the 10-event mark. This year\u2019s annual picnic saw a 33 percent increase in student attendance from 2018, although this growth cannot be directly attributed to \u201c30 in 30.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cStudent life is, to be honest, kind of dead,\u201d said Nibras Ahmed, a pre-med junior majoring in economics.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/p>\n Students hold varying feelings about the initiative. Amy Jiang, a senior studying optometry, said \u201c30 in 30\u201d will encourage people to socialize. As a freshman, she struggled to find friends with similar interests amidst a sea of pre-med students in her courses. She said many friendships that begin in class fizzle out after the semester ends.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause the next semester a lot of students are taking different classes and it\u2019s sort of hard to reconnect,\u201d said Jiang. \u201cSo you sort of lose that relationship for the six months that you had.\u201d She attended the study abroad fair, a \u201c30 in 30\u201d event, and met students interested in traveling to the same countries as her.<\/p>\n However, Nibras Ahmed said that while \u201c30 in 30\u201d is a valiant effort, Hunter can improve further. He said many peers have different schedules or work part-time. Ahmed suggests hosting more events outside of dean\u2019s hours may help.<\/p>\n \u201cStudent life is, to be honest, kind of dead,\u201d said Ahmed, a pre-med junior majoring in economics. \u201cI know you can\u2019t organize 50 different events, but at least making an active effort to kind of diversify the kinds of events, and the time and duration of the events as well.\u201d<\/p>\n According to OSA, its commitment to increasing student participation will not end with \u201c30 in 30.\u201d The office plans to continue its Student Leadership Colloquium, a series of leadership seminars, and Hunter Has Heart, a social justice program, to interest students.<\/p>\n In addition, USG, another office that serves the student body, also has engagement plans in the works. Cultural Affairs Commissioner Alexia Morrison, a junior studying human biology and psychology, said she will be working on a mental and sexual health awareness week this semester. She said starting fresh as a new student is not easy.<\/p>\n \u201cIf I could be a catalyst for making friends or encourage somebody to come out and do something new and, you know, take a leap. Because I had to take this leap,\u201d said Morrison, a transfer student from Washington, D.C.. \u201cI think social events are important in a school like this that is so separated.\u201d<\/p>\n Taking advantage of activities has definitely worked for Mejia. Talking to him now, seeing him as a shy freshman seems impossible. As a publicity assistant for Career Development Services, his job is to walk up to random students, start a conversation with them and convince them to attend his office\u2019s events. He said the more events students attend, the more confident they will feel in themselves.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/brie.hunter.cuny.edu\/hunterathenian\/wp-content\/uploads\/Untitled-design-10.png\")
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