Passion for Dancin’

Kwantlen students are showing they have a Passion for Dancin’.

Passion for Dancin’ is a new club at Kwantlen that allows students who like to dance the opportunity to learn a variety of cultural dances, including bellydancing, salsa, bachata and merengue.

Meirna Said created the club only about a month ago, although she has been seriously thinking about it since last year.

“What I got from [the club members] is that they wanted a workout and learning how to dance, and that’s what I want to give them. I want to give them fun, enjoyment and learning with it,” Said said.

The Dance Towards Peace Organization, which Said represents, was what inspired her to start the club. The organization “tries to promote peace through dancing. And especially through children. So we used to try to teach children how to dance. We used to go to the cancer hospitals…and teach them how to dance. And we found out it was great because with dancing you can do anything,” Said said.

Next week, club members will be learning how to dance salsa and they’ll be going to a salsa night somewhere in town during the week, to see first-hand what salsa dancing is like.

The club meets every Thursday night from 7 to 8 p.m. at the yoga studio on the Richmond campus. A fee of $30 is charged for the club for the whole semester, and goes towards the Breast Cancer society.

No student clubs at Langley, so Tubbs creates Sandwich Appreciation Club

Christopher Tubbs was a first-year university student at Kwantlen Polytechnic University when he discovered a lack of student life.

When he first asked the KSA about student clubs on the Langley campus, he was told there weren’t any. The majority of clubs were located on the Surrey and Richmond campuses and the majority of the clubs focus on academic programs and specific interests.

Tubbs was looking for something different: a way to meet new friends in a social environment. So he began the creation of the Sandwich Appreciation Club.

The club, which states in it constitution that it will “unite sandwich lovers beneath a common banner so that they may be provided with peace, order, and good carbs,” has over 60 members, and according to Tubbs, is still the only club on the Langley Campus.

According to the Kwantlen website, the Sandwich Appreciation Club was created to “appreciate the sandwich in its many forms with its many ingredients, including wraps, to promote public awareness and understanding of sandwich appreciation and to encourage sandwich-orientated discussion, debate, and activity.”

Tubbs said that the club’s title is all in good humor, and that the main objection is to get students together for a good time.

“The Sandwich Appreciation Club is a casual thing and we are more than happy to poke fun at ourselves,” said Tubbs.

While there are no other funnily-named student groups located at Kwantlen, there appears to be a trend of students wanting to created social clubs.

Simon Fraser University has both the Bubble Blowing club, created to “spread happiness around campus,” and the “Beard and M(o)ustache Fellowship,” which claims to “promote understanding of hairy people, and to fight discrimination against bearded men and woman”.

The University of British Columbia has both the “Radical Beer Faction” and the “Peace and Love Club.”

While Tubbs has not yet arranged his club’s first meeting of the year, he said the hopes student club would have all kinds of group-hangouts and activities throughout the year.

Budding philosophers get together

Kwantlen students who can’t get enough of their philosophy class, may have the opportunity to dig further into the world of philosophical ideas.

The Philosophy Club is a student run-organization that focuses on using philosophical ideas to analyze current issues and encourage advanced critical thinking.

The club was created two years ago and has previously held meetings at both the Richmond and Surrey campuses. In past sessions, students would attend weekly meetings that for discussions, analysis of situations and debates on underlying questions.

Cole Griffin, is this year’s president of the Philosophy Club, and is attempting to launch a new series of sessions.

Philosophy professor Puqun Li said the club would show films relevant to philosophical ideas to stimulate discussion. Club coordinator Sean Bradshaw would provide students with handouts that will guide them through the topics addressed in the films.

The club has also invited guest speakers to attend the sessions, including other philosophers and a variety of professors from other disciplines.

“Philosophy wholeheartedly dives into what it is to be a human being, and the conflicts of the mind and spirit, as we struggle through life,” Bradshaw said.

Debate topics that are expected to arise during the sessions are questions regarding religion, the similarities and differences in truth in science and religion, and the search for the source of moral consciousness.

Those who are interested in learning more about the philosophy club, or are willing to help get the club off the ground, can e-mail philosophyinfilm@gmail.com.