Students will have a new, one-stop shop for activities, club news, and events in the 2020–2021 school year. Milton has partnered with CampusGroups, an online platform where they can connect with one another, express their identities, learn about special interests, and plan their attendance at events throughout the year.
The Deans’ Office will send information in the coming days about how to access CampusGroups. The platform will be rolled out over time, beginning with opening of school activities and programs.
Last spring’s switch to remote learning in response to COVID-19 highlighted the need to streamline information about co-curricular activities, said Kelly Reiser, director of Student Activities. The flurry of email from different clubs, publications, and departments across the School overwhelmed the inboxes of students who were already seeing an increase in messages related to their classes.
“We have talked so much about the importance of building community, especially during times when we can’t all be together physically,” Reiser said. “This is a way to keep those connections going and offer fun activities.”
All students will have a CampusGroups account, through which they can access events, beginning with new-student programming and activities for returning students. Eventually, the School’s dozens of student-led clubs and affinity groups, publications, teams, musical groups, tutoring opportunities, community engagement programs, and more will be accessible through the platform, and each group’s leaders will have the ability to post announcements and invitations to meetings. The program syncs with different calendar apps as well as Zoom, so students who are learning remotely can easily keep track of activities, Reiser said.
“It’s a new way for student leaders to connect with people in their organizations,” she said.
CampusGroups’ home screens will display content related to the clubs and activities students select. A virtual activities fair, in which students can learn more about co-curricular activities and sign up for programs they find interesting, will happen early in the fall semester.
The platform has long-term benefits—it’s not just a way to stay connected while some students are remote—in that it will help provide the Student Activities Office with data about events. Metrics will show which events are popular and which aren’t, allow students to sign up for off-campus trips, and eventually offer student leadership training for those interested.