Student Orgs at Cedarville University that you might not have heard of

By Esther Fultz

Cedarville University’s student organizations are one of the many things that make campus life interesting and unique. 

At the beginning of every year, the university holds an Involvement fair that features local churches and ministries as well as gives students the opportunity to learn about orgs focusing on sports, academics, and other interests. Some orgs appear year after year and are well known to campus; others, like the ones below, are brand new to campus.

Global Students Organization

Global Students Organization was founded to help international students stay connected beyond orientation week.  

“International students have been growing in number at Cedarville University,” said Sebastian Vasquez, president of the Global Students Organization. “It’s a big group of people coming together and the energy is high and everything is so exciting, but as the semester goes on, people become disconnected.”

Global Students Organization is composed of different region groups (Canada, Latin America, Europe, Middle East and North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia and East and Southeast Asia), each with a male and a female representative. Students are placed in a region group according to their home country, and each group meets weekly throughout the semester to build community and get to know each other better. 

Throughout the semester on occasion, org-wide events, such as Culture Nights, will also be held.

“A culture night is an event day where one culture of a region is selected and celebrated,” Vasquez said. “The region that has their culture spotlighted for the day will come up with games, events, dances, music, food and costumes and everyone else will come to that event and experience that culture.”

Global Students Organization is also planning an org-wide Olympics with various events where the different regions will compete against each other.

“We strive to create community-related events to strengthen international students in their faith and also their relationships with one another,” Vasquez said. “I have a great team, and working on this org has bonded us as internationals.”

Alexander Hamilton Society

The Cedarville chapter of the Alexander Hamilton Society was founded in January of this year with the goal of encouraging nonpartisan political conversation amongst students and discussing what the United States’ role should be in global affairs.

“We have weekly dinners where we discuss international relations,” said sophomore Erin Mitchell, president of the Alexander Hamilton Society. “A couple of times a semester, we invite expert speakers from national organizations who work in foreign policy through the government or think tanks or through their past careers, and they come to Cedarville and speak with one of our professors here.”

Rather than encouraging students to think uniformly or even focusing on a particular political viewpoint, the Alexander Hamilton Society focuses on educating and informing students about current issues and events.

“It’s not so much about what policies individual people support as much as it is open discussion about the pros and cons of every aspect of issues,” Mitchell said. “We also do a lot of prayer for unreached people groups and issues regarding human rights.”

The organization’s next main event will be held on September 21 and focuses on what America’s role should be in protecting Taiwan from an invasion from China.

Aviation Enthusiast Recreational Organization 

Aviation Enthusiast Recreational Organization, or AERO for short, was created to give anyone interested in aviation the opportunity to explore it in more depth, regardless of their degree or major. 

“I’ve been interested in aviation since I was a kid,” said Jak Mieding, treasurer of AERO. “I’ve been interested in being a pilot, and since aviation is such a big thing I figured there must be other people who are interested as well.”

This semester, AERO events will include field trips to the Air Force Museum, seminars and bringing in guest speakers to discuss aviation.  Cedarville University faculty and staff members with backgrounds in aviation will also be invited to speak at AERO events.  

“Eventually, the ultimate goal is doing flights as an org,” Mieding said. “So students or faculty that have their pilot’s license will be able to go rent a plane and go out and fly and just take people on introductory flights. We’re still working on getting there, but that’s the ultimate goal.”

Esther Fultz is a senior Social Work major and the Off-Campus Editor for Cedars. When she’s not writing or editing for Cedars she enjoys thrifting, making coffee, exploring new places, and spending time with friends.