Just off route 322, nestled behind Bozorth and Hawthorn halls, is the Townhouse Community Center. This quaint building is home to a communal space that, on Thursday, Oct. 24, hosted a small Halloween themed get-together for residents of the Townhouses.

This “Spooktacular” was organized by Townhouse CAs as a way to bring together the community. There were candy bowls and a spooky YouTube video playing on the TV. As people filtered in, one of the CAs got a Halloween themed game of Kahoot up and running.

Events like this are common among residence halls and help keep morale up. Especially around the holidays, it’s important to host activities that get students out of their dorms or apartments and into a space to socialize.

A 2023 study published in Family Medicine and Community Health found that individuals with a higher sense of community felt fewer symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress. Beyond that, universities like Rowan have long been incorporating community engagement into student life; it’s why students live on campus in the first place.

As people settled in for some rounds of Kahoot, it became clear that the CAs in the Townhouses were putting in the work to create engaging events for their residents. Residents who showed up for the event seemed excited, engaged, and like they all knew one another from previous community events. 

“Meeting up with friends and people, [and] socializing,” said Aydin Coutts, a junior supply chain major when talking about his favorite part of the event. 

It was clear that the residents present were a community, and it’s no surprise that this Spooktacular presented an opportunity for students like Coutts to meet up and socialize.

After the first Kahoot about the ancient history of Halloween, participants took a Halloween themed “this or that” poll.

The divisive nature of questions like if one would rather be friends with a witch or a vampire threatened to dissolve the friendly atmosphere of the room, but fortunately everybody made it out of there alive and played the final Kahoot about Halloween movie facts.

Rose Smith, a sophomore psychology major and Townhouse CA described the events that CAs usually organize. The CAs alternate the events that they host, with some hosting passive programs and some hosting building-wide programs, with monthly C2s, or Campus Connection events that connect students with the campus themselves.

“I liked that I got to see my residents because I don’t normally get as much engagement with them. So it was really nice to see everyone just because they’re lovely and I really like connecting with them,” said Smith. 

It was evident that a lot of care was put into this event, with the CAs arriving early to set up, having candy and spooky activities for everyone, and Smith even arriving in costume. 

To be a part of get-togethers like this and get involved with your resident community (or another on campus), you can find them posted on ProfLink, with information about time and place, price if there will be food/drink, dress code, and more.

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