Brickyard ice cream social brings together CALS community

Sept. 22 may have marked the beginning of fall, but overnight rains had left Raleigh as steamy and muggy as any day of summer. And it was all the more enticement for College of Agriculture and Life Sciences students, faculty, staff and alumni to head to the Brickyard near Bostian Hall for free cups of Howling Cow ice cream at the CALS Delegation Ice Cream Social.

The event, sponsored by the CALS delegates to the N.C. State University Student Government, was co-chaired by CALS student senators Harrison Do and Bradley Poston, both seniors majoring in human biology. The goal of the social, they said, was to create more unity and dialogue among CALS students, faculty, staff and alumni, as well as give student senators and constituents an opportunity to meet.

“The CALS Delegation Ice Cream Social was a real success,” Do said. “It was great seeing so many members of the CALS community get the chance to meet and learn more about this great College.”

Said Poston, “It was extremely satisfying to see faculty, staff and alumni interacting with students. In my opinion, we exceeded our goals.”        

In preparation for the social, the delegates had purchased 1,000 cups of ice cream made in the College’s Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences. The event was funded by the CALS Alumni and Friends Society and the office of CALS Dean Johnny Wynne.

An estimated 800 CALS students attended the event, “and if you were to include the amount of faculty, staff and alumni, I would say that 900+ attended, which left us with about 100 cups of ice cream,” Poston said. “The leftover ice cream was passed out to the volunteers of Shack-a-thon [on the Brickyard].”

Do said, “Many of the individuals who attended the event said that they appreciated the CALS delegation for taking the time to create this event for the College,” while Poston noted that “many professors congratulated the CALS delegation for organizing an event like this.” 

In fact, the ice cream distribution was at the heart of a number of CALS activities and information exhibits set up alongside Bostian.

Heading north, there were displays about CALS undergraduate research, international study and health career degree programs, as well as the 10% campaign, an Extension-partnered program which encourages institutions and individuals to invest 10 percent of their food budget on locally produced foods.

Just south of the ice cream table were stations with information from CALS Career Services, the Agri-Life Council, VetPAC (the Veterinary Professions Advising Center) and the NCSU Student Government/CALS delegation.

“Ours is a great College that provides so many opportunities for students,” said Do. “I hope that the event created more unity within our College. During these difficult financial times, it is important that our College stick together and that we support one another. Together, the entire CALS community will survive the budget cuts. Together, we will continue a tradition of excellence that has always been part of the CALS history.”

And if Poston and Do have their way, the ice cream party will become an autumn Brickyard tradition.

“We hope the CALS Delegation Ice Cream Social will grow to become an annual event,” Poston said. “I challenge the upcoming senators to maintain this event. Doing so will give CALS senators the opportunity to meet their constituents on a yearly basis.” – Terri Leith