Some students have a difficult time adjusting to life at FAMU. For 18 years of their life, they lived at home and were dependent on their parents. To go from having that consistent support system to being away from their family can sometimes be a struggle.
Being able to go home for the holidays and the weekend is their little piece of peace while they are in college. However, for out of state students, the travel cost can be too much of a financial burden to be able to go home and see family.
For many out of state students, members of the campus organizations become a family away from their family and make it easier for students to adapt to campus life. The Ohio Club was created to help students from Ohio get acclimated to life at FAMU.
Romagne Burton, a third-year pre-physical therapy student, and the 2019-2020 president, has had a desire to start this club for years. The Cleveland native said, “Since my first year at FAMU we’ve been talking about starting this club, it feels good to finally see it up and growing.”
The club is already starting to set up different events around campus. The first event the organization had was a Trap karaoke. The event was held with the Michigan club and the Chicago club
The current vice president, Briana Hargrove, a fourth-year mathematics student from Cincinnati, said this is only the beginning.
“I would like for us to have another event this semester called Take a Bite of Ohio,” Hargrove said. “The event would be dedicated to bringing some of the food that is only made in Ohio and bring it to Tallahassee. It would be like a taste of home for Ohio natives and would be a chance for others to taste our food.”
The Ohio Club is already starting to gain recognition from people outside of FAMU as well. The adviser for the Ohio club, political science professor Chris Daniels said, “People on Facebook have been offering money for the organization and the members. The donors were wanting to possibly start a scholarship for students or even buy book vouchers to help students with the out of state tuition costs.”
This organization serves as a family for Ohio natives. Although it is only for people from Ohio the organization’s events are open to everyone and it wants to educate others on all things Ohio. The members of the organization are excited to grow and be able to bring a little of Ohio to FAMU.
For more information on the club or upcoming events, the club can be contacted through Instagram @theohioclubfamu.