Furman’s Student Life and Clubs on Campus

When I first toured Furman, I anxiously asked my tour guide question after question. He answered excitedly, especially when he was talking about student life and organizations. Eventually, I mustered up enough courage to ask more personal questions that I cared about. I asked, “Does Furman have an Improv troupe?” The tour guide’s silence was worrying, then he burst with energy. Not only did we have a troupe, but he was the troupe’s secretary. Fast forward to today, and I’m the troupes President.  

Hey y’all! My name is Tate Denham, I’m a rising junior here at Furman majoring in Economics and Business Finance from Tampa Florida, and today, I wanna take you on a brief tour of the vibrant club life here at Furman!  

How many clubs and organizations are there at Furman?

Furman boasts over 170 student-run clubs and organizations. Each incredibly niche interest has a place here, from birdwatchers to Pitch-Perfect-like acapella singers, there’s a place for you. Every semester, we hold our beloved club fair, where students can explore, meet club members, learn about activities, and join the ones that spark their interest! Each club is always showcasing something different.

The outdoors club normally comes decked in outdoors equipment, with their iconic kayak and trade booth, where they’ll trade a club shirt for a joke, piece of candy, or just about anything you can hype up enough.

The event planning committee, FUSAB (Furman University Student Activities Board) always has giveaways and awesome stickers. Our K-pop dance team always performs an awesome flash mob, and our Student Government members always wear their familiar SGA quarter-zips while handing out Furman-branded candy.

The energy clubs bring to campus is electric. Often, clubs spend time on Joseph Vaughn Plaza (JVP), where they hand out free swag, advertise their events, and usually raffle off some awesome prizes! On any given day, at least one club event is happening. We have many iconic ones, like FUSAB’s Halloween Haunted Trail, The FUISA (Furman University International Students Association) Multicultural Dance, The annual FUOC (Furman University Outdoors Club) trip to Turtleback Falls, a nearby natural waterfall, as well as Heller Service Corps annual Valentines Day Dance, where we bring special needs agencies in our community to campus to provide the opportunity for their members to celebrate and dance with us students. On any given day, Furman has at least one event happening. 

Where can I find out more about Furman’s organizations?

With so many clubs and events – some students worry they won’t be able to keep up with it all! Luckily, Furman’s club database, called SyncDin provides a fantastic way to connect with the school’s many organizations. All events are registered through SyncDin, which creates a huge collection of all the campus events, all put into one easily accessible calendar.   

Personally, I’m involved in a collection of different on-campus clubs. I’m the troupe president of Improv!able Cause, the treasurer of the Triathlon Club, and the president of Mud, Sweat and Tears. I also served as a Sophomore Representative with Student Government, and I’m a member of FUOC and Pauper Players, the theatre club.  

Furman students are highly involved all over campus. Our days usually start and end with club duties – from designing our club’s next sticker, planning a weekend event, writing up a purchase request, tabling with our club, and attending a general meeting.  

Club Funding

Speaking of funding, clubs on campus receives a certain allocation of funding each year, decided by the treasury department of Student Government, which also accepts and denies all purchase requests, which are also submitted through SyncDin.  

Student Government is instrumental in helping new clubs start up. This past year, we approved funding for several new clubs, including Palacats, an organization that helps stray cats on campus, and the Furman Academic Team, which hopes to compete in national academic bowls. I even started my own club, called Mud, Sweat, and Tears, and got approved for funding immediately. We run all sorts of Obstacle Course Races, like Tough Mudders. That said, it truly goes to show that Furman will fund pretty much any club you could ever want to start, even incredibly niche ones. 

Reflection

Each club here attracts its own group and becomes such a fantastic community, with such a welcoming and kind demeanor. Finding a group where you click with people happens quickly and very easily, as long as you make the effort to join the club. 

My experience with club life here has opened me to a world of new opportunities. Never did I think I would be running from a Furman Pride Alliance Drag Show right to a Pickleball tournament, followed immediately by hosting an improv show, then getting up the next day and running an Ironman, but thanks to Furman, and the mentors that my clubs have gifted me, I get the best of both worlds. It doesn’t matter what you do, only that you give your all to it.