“I Heart Fresno State” week takes place every spring semester with the purpose of lifting up the school spirit and for students to make friends in a festive environment. This semester, “I Heart Fresno State” week takes place from March 18-22.
The “Bulldogpalooza” event kicked off “I Heart Fresno State” week on Monday at the Resnick Student Union. “Bulldogpalooza” was a music festival-themed event with a lineup of three DJs: DJ Bluz Cluz, Princess Rose and Nate.
“The purpose for this event is to bring up the Bulldog spirit,” said Bianca Palma, student event coordinator and social media manager of Spotlight Events. “I consider it a part two to homecoming without the football.”
Created in 2016, “I Heart Fresno State” week was originally intended to prolong the school spirit from the Homecoming games into the spring semester. Over time it became a festive event for students to celebrate and make friends along the way.
“It started out as a week to promote spirit and pride on campus,” said Anyssa Garza, program advisor for Spotlight Events and Student Leadership. “Now it’s become a great way for students to connect with other students and sort of engage with the campus community overall.”
Spotlight Events, the main organizers of “I Heart Fresno State,” collaborated with local vendors and added more activities, such as karaoke, in order to encourage turnout within their events.
Spotlight Events collaborated with local food vendors such as Yosemite Lemonade, who offer various flavors of lemonade and Yosemite Concessions, which offers large, fair-like corn dogs. Alongside the activities, the services provided by the event create an environment that allows students to have the opportunity to connect with others.
“Every year each student comes up with a different type of vibe they want to go with ‘I Heart Fresno State’ week,” Garza said. “In order to engage our students and relate to them a bit better we have to think about what’s gonna attract these students to come out to these events.”
“I Heart Fresno State” week features a variety of different activities that cater to the diverse population of students. For example, “Doglands” is an event that will happen Wednesday and caters to showcasing student art while also becoming a resource fair.
“This event gets students out of their comfort zone and provides them with the tools to make new friends and make good experiences here at Fresno State,” said Mia Villalobos, a student event coordinator for Spotlight Events.
Entry to the “I Heart Fresno State” events is free of charge and all that is required is scanning a QR code or providing a student ID number. “Doglands” will be at the Memorial Gardens from 11 a.m.-1p.m., “Camp Karaoke” will be on Thursday, at the RSU event plaza from 7-10 p.m. and “Barking Loud” will be on Friday, at the speaker’s platform from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
