When Alabama State University hosts an event, we usually look around and wonder where the rest of the students are. Maybe some students were not informed, or some events and opportunities were not promoted as well as they should have been. But I believe many students miss out on opportunities here because they are not promoted enough or at all.

For instance, freshmen who are newly enrolled in college barely know anyone, and if they do not know someone, they find it hard to be informed about certain things. We say we want more student involvement like other HBCUs, but to do so, we have to promote it for all students to see to allow them to meet new people and get more opportunities.

This university promotes most events on social media, but some students do not know or follow these pages because there are so many to keep up with. For example, various organizations on campus offer different events and opportunities that can help you gain experience or enhance your college experience, but many students do not show up to these events because they do not know about them. A lot of students are not aware that we have a school paper, The Hornet Tribune. Once, I told someone I work as a viewpoint editor for The Hornet Tribune, and they were shocked.

This newspaper should be known throughout the school because we write about things you need to know and should want to know. We talk about issues on this campus and worldwide issues as well. Once students enroll here, this university should provide students with all social platforms so they can keep up with the new events and upcoming occasions. Not only are clueless freshmen missing out on opportunities, but there are upperclassmen who miss these opportunities as well because of the lack of promotion.

Being informed and attending events can help students understand what is happening around campus and increase their chances of building a career and social network, especially for upperclassmen. Oftentimes, freshmen attend career and internship fair events but are not aware that many internship tables only accept upperclassmen, primarily juniors and seniors.

This generation’s presence on social media makes it possible to promote events more. When you come across flyers, share them with a friend so no one misses out; this way, they can choose to attend or not. Attending promoted events will not only advance you as a person, but it can also help you reach your academic and career goals, gain connections and build future bonds. All events that the students need to know about should be properly promoted so we can attend these events. It should not be out of coincidence that you found out about an event.

Informing students about social events is just as important as career events so students can meet new people. We need more student engagement and promotion at all events on and off campus. Some of the most promoted events were Welcome Week, Homecoming and Welcome Back Week. This is because they are advertised well and weeks ahead of time. Hyping up an event and sending reminders to students can help boost engagement and ensure they do not miss important events.

These events should also be held during times when most students are available to attend. Most of the time, events are from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., and most students have classes during that time, so they have to choose between class or the event, and most students choose class.

In short, we should not have a hard time finding out about these opportunities that the university offers. We should know about it through social media platforms, flyers or email. These educational and internship events should be promoted to all students.