Pizza in, Procrastination out: Here is what the Long Night Agaist Procrastination looked like
On March 17, St. Thomas University brought to James Dunn Hall the Long Night Against Procrastination to maximize productivity with workshops, trivia, prizes and food. The objective was to give students the motivation they need to engage with their assignments and take fun breaks that involve the community.
Upon entering JDH, students were greeted by the smell of coffee and pizza. Student Services offered cheese, vegetarian, pepperoni and American pizza. On the other side of the cafeteria, a large table had sodas, chips, coffee and milk.
Carmen Law, assistant director of Residence Life, and Carrie Monteith-Levesque, the international student coordinator, were serving pizza to a long line of excited students. Alongside them, international student volunteers passed around empty boxes and clean plastic plates.
For most students, this was paradise.
The tables were filled with students with their laptops opened, writing papers and studying for upcoming exams.
Procrastination is the act of putting off tasks that we don’t want to do. The LNAP wanted to encourage students to check off their to-do lists and get some work done. Having study snacks and company helps some people force themselves to go through their assignments.
With greasy hands and a full stomach, Alberto Chavez, an international student from Ecuador, started working on his latest assignment.
He says the environment was nice at first, but then it became too distracting. Chavez ended up eating and talking more than he would have liked.
“Funny enough, I did procrastinate during the long night against procrastination,” said Chavez. “But at the very least I got a head start on my paper.”
While the first floor had food stations, the classrooms on the ground floor were opened for small group workshops. Milagros Reyes, a second-year student from Peru, said she enjoyed learning Macrame and ended up making a small pot hanger.
“It was very de-stressing and fun. It took me a while to get the hang of [Macrame], but once I finished, I was more than satisfied,” said Reyes.
But the highlight of the night came at 10 pm. Students rushed to room G1 to participate in the bingo for the option to win prizes. Both Chavez and Reyes participated in the bingo against more than 40 students. Sadly, neither of them won.
“It is what it is,” said Reyes after coming out of the G1 classroom. “Maybe next year I’ll get something.”
Cesar Camacho, a first-year student from Ecuador, won a gift card for $20 at STU’s bookshop. The other prizes included a Sobeys gift card and a blender. Although he didn’t go home with the biggest prize, he was still pleased with what he got.
“I don’t usually win anything, so this has been the best part of my night,” he said.
