Sophomore year can be a stressful time — but the sophomore class board is committed to helping second-year students relax a bit, said 2012 Class Board President Imani Tisdale '12.
February is the second annual Slump Month, during which the class board is hosting events intended to ease anxieties about the so-called sophomore slump.
In their second year, students are forced to narrow their academic interests, choose their concentration, decide whether they want to study abroad and worry about summer internships, Tisdale said.
"I think it's different for every person, but it's difficult because you have to decide what you're going to major in and think about the future even though you aren't quite there yet," she said.
Erin Jones '12 echoed these sentiments. "All of a sudden you feel like there's so much life to figure out," she said.
As part of Slump Month, the 2012 Class Board scheduled five events for February. Its first event, "Throwback," which was held Saturday, treated students to focaccia sandwiches and Nickelodeon cartoons.
"It went really well," Tisdale said. "We were really impressed. I think we ended up getting at least 100 people."
The University has also supported efforts to assuage sophomore-year stresses. The student-initiated Match Advising Program for Sophomores highlights a growing focus on helping second-year students cope with their decisions. Coordinated by Molly Jacobson '10, the program has paired 40 sophomores with 40 seniors of similar interests, The Herald reported Feb. 11.
The class board is hopeful that all students will warm to the events. "I think a lot of kids feel that they have to be a sophomore to attend the events, but they're for everyone. They're only geared towards sophomores," Tisdale said.
Upcoming Slump Month events include games at the arcade Dave and Buster's on Feb. 18, a hookah night at Zenobia on Feb. 24 and a ski trip to Okemo on Feb. 27.
