Bridgewater, Va.- The student organization in charge of campus programming, formerly known as Eagle Production, is now CEAT: Campus Engagement and Activity Team. 

CEAT “provides experiences and events for students to be able to connect with others outside of the classroom, build BC pride, and have something to do that’s fun and engaging for them so they feel like Bridgewater College is their home,” said Sam Schlernitzauer, coordinator of student engagement & leadership.

Schlernitzauer shared that the idea for the transition began last academic year, when EP noticed a decline in event attendance. In January of 2020, Schlernitzauer, the Vice President for Student Life & Dean of Students Dr. Leslie Frere and Assistant Dean of Students Whitney Smith started a brainstorming session. They also invited student members of EP to join them. 

At that meeting those involved wanted to answer the questions “What does the campus actually need? What do students at Bridgewater College really want?” said Schlernitzauer. 

Together they created a word cloud with words and phrases they connected with EP. Some of the words they came up with included leader, fun, creative, innovative, diverse, family, and engage.  The result of this brainstorm was a rebranding of Eagle Production as CEAT.

Junior Lamont Jones was involved in EP last year, and is now part of CEAT. “It wasn’t really that hard,” Jones said, speaking of the transition. “Most of the stuff we do is kind of the same. It’s just mostly the name change and what we’re gearing towards.”

Although the basic purpose and mission of the organization remains the same, there will be changes to the student leadership structure and an expansion of the types of programming CEAT offers. 

In addition to hosting on-campus programming, which was generally held on weekend nights, CEAT will be adding daytime programming and off-campus trips. Eagle Nation student spirit squad, which was started last year to support Bridgewater College athletics, will now be under CEAT.

So while classic events such as Bingo and Trivia Nights will still be around, students can also expect a variety of new types of programming. 

These changes to CEAT are reflected in its new leadership structure, which features an Executive Board. This board will include a chair, several student directors and crew members –the students who staff events. 

The director positions will be Director of Social Events, Director of Membership and Operations, Director of Spirit and Traditions, Director of Late Night Programs, Director of Daytime Programming and Director of BC Excursions. 

Because these changes are so new, there has not been time to form the new Executive Board. According to Schlernitzauer, the current plan is to begin accepting Executive Board applications in mid-October or early November, in order to have the positions filled and students trained by the start of the spring semester in January. 

CEAT has also faced challenges this semester in adjusting to Covid-19 regulations. Current policies for all CEAT events require students to RSVP for events, provide evidence of a clear questionnaire on the LiveSafe app, wear masks and social distance. 

So far this semester, CEAT has hosted a few daytime events, such as BC Mask Pop-up Shops, where students could get a free BC mask, Human Foosball and Zen Garden making. 

Upcoming CEAT events include Cellphone Smackdown Game Show on Sept. 19 and Outdoor Game Night on Sept. 26. 

Students interested in getting involved with CEAT are welcome to join any meeting, which are held at 7 p.m. on Tuesday nights on the Rebecca Hall quad, or in the Eagle’s Nest in the case of bad weather.