Associate Director of Communications for the Department of Student Development and Leadership Francisco Velazquez said the goal of the event is for students to make connections with organizations.

“The university is a big place and there is something for everyone,” Velazquez said. “We want students to feel welcome and included, of course. We also want them to feel encouraged to get involved.”

The event also hosted food, music provided by student radio station Impact 89.9 FM and fun activities for participants to take part in. 

MSU President Kevin Guskiewicz was in attendance at Sunday’s event. With this event being his first Sparticipation since becoming university president in March, Guskiewicz said he was thrilled to see so many attendees. 

"It’s incredible that there’s something for everyone to get involved, get engaged, be curious and have fun," Guskiewicz said. “This experience at Michigan State University goes beyond the classroom and it starts right here with the connections of these amazing organizations.”

Guskiewicz shared his hopes for freshmen and new students throughout the school year. 

“This is an incredible opportunity,” Guskiewicz said. “This is a fashionable university and we are welcoming one of our largest classes, if not the largest classes in history. We’re coming up on our 170th birthday, and I want to be sure that people know that they spotted one of the greatest universities in the nation and they have to make the most of it. Those four years will go by fast so we’re going to make sure they have a great experience while they’re here.”

Students Life and Engagement Vice President Vennie Gore shared his hopes and expectations for the school year.

“I love this event,” Gore said. “This is an event where students can come and find a committee or group that they want to belong to so it’s a lot of fun. I’m hoping that we will have a really good year where students can find their community, and get engaged. When you’re engaged, you have a great experience and it makes a big difference."

Engagement in Sunday's activities spanned from watching sword fighting to picking up free potted plants while perusing booths. From archery to wakeboarding, there was something for everyone. 

MSU Archery Club

Nursing senior Anne Falk, who is president of MSU Archery, said the group of archers is always open to new members, especially freshmen. 

“In addition to just the student club, we go to different collegiate events throughout the year,” Falk said. “We do beginners if you’ve been working before shooting. It’s really an open skill level for people just getting into the sports.”

Residence Hall Association of MSU

Social work senior Erin Caldwell, president of the Residence Halls Association, or RHA, said students can join the association as a hall representative or Black or Queer Caucus representative. Caldwell said students can also get involved with the RHA by attending its movie events, music listening parties and destress events during finals. 

RHA represents students living in residence halls. Caldwell said some of the many resources RHA has to offer include funding to different student organizations of up to $3,500, health and services resources, and free rental of technology such as Nintendo Switches, karaoke machines and projectors. 

“Just join our organization in general; it’s a good way to get involved,” Caldwell said. “We have a pretty good reach around campus. We also have the best merch on campus in my unbiased opinion.”

MSU Kendo Club

MSU Kendo President and psychology senior Hunter Thomsen said Kendo is a a Japanese martial art often compared to Japanese fencing. Kendo means 'way of the sword,' Thomsen said. 

“Kendo is more of a sport rather than learning how to properly use a sword but you can still learn," Thomsen said. "Kendo is more so learning bushido, which is 'the way of the samurai' in a sense. You’re learning a lot of the lessons from that not only mentally, physically, but also spiritually."

Thomsen said the group has competitions throughout the year and three practices a week where participants improve their footwork and handwork.

“We practice sparring with each other,” Thomsen said. “We also practice Waza, which are very specific techniques. With Kendo, there is a lot of Japanese culture built into it and I actually love it to death.”

Thomsen said there's a "clear definition and path" that Kendo newcomers take as they go through the process of learning each aspect of the sport.

Not only has the organization given Thomsen a sense of community here, but it has also opened up a global community from Detroit to Canada and Japan. 

“I have made friends with people from around the United States and around the world just by practicing Kendo and just that sense of community is strong," Thomsen said. "Joining Kendo club right now would be great as it is a growing sport in America and it will keep growing. It’s an environment that you can get lost in.”

MSU Wakeboard team and club

Accounting sophomore Christian Bethea, president of MSU Wakeboard team and club, said he’s made a lot of friends in his two years with the organization.

“In between classes or after class, we take out the boat from 12 to 8 o’clock Mondays through Friday and in between that we have house parties, events, hayrides, semi-finals, parties for Halloween and St. Patrick's Day,” Bethea said. “It’s a fun atmosphere. It’s just a big, big friend group that gets to go out and hang out on the boat and party afterwards.”

Bethea said the organization welcomes anyone interested in joining with open arms.

“The barrier for entry is not hard,” Bethea said. “I know for Greek life, some people don’t want to go through the rushing process and have to live in a house for a year. Ours is like 'Hey, if you’re interested in this, come on the boat tomorrow.' If you pay your dues, you can come out on the boat within the next hour. If you’re down to learn how to wakeboard, we’ll bring you out and it’s an atmosphere that anyone can be part of.”

Bethea said in his time with the organization, he's grown closer with everyone involved and wanted to become more involved with the E-board.

“There’s been no short of fun,” Bethea said. “I’m always on the boat. I was on the boat from August all the way to the end of November and after that we were wakeboarding in the Red Cedar River in February. There’s so much stuff we have to offer year round and I’ve had such a fun time last year, and I wanted to be more involved with the club and ended up being the president of a 200-300 students organization. I loved every second.”

Offering advice to freshmen and other students, Bethea said the organization is very welcoming to anyone that is shy about joining a new organization.

“If you’re looking for a group of people or is just nervous to meet new people in college, the MSU wake team is such a lovely group of people and you’ll have an activity to do every day after class,” Bethea said. “If you never tried wakeboarding or wake surfing before, everyone’s here to teach you, nobody’s here to push you down but to lift you up.”

Crunch Fitness of East Lansing

Jamell Swann, executive director of sales and marketing for Crunch Fitness, said Sunday marked the gym's third year at Sparticipation. 

Crunch Fitness, which is a half mile away from campus, offers cardio and strength equipment, group fitness classes, massages, tanning and personal training.

"We’re really a full-service facility for the kids here in East Lansing," Swann said. 

Swann said freshmen and other students should join the gym because it is for everyone that’s looking for a place to work out.

“In 1989, we were founded on the principle of 'No judgment,' which obviously became coined by other folks, but we really truly have something for everyone,” Swann said. “Whether you are a nativist and you’ve never been to a gym or you’re an experienced gym lifter, we have a great way for you to exercise, whether you would want to do that with your peers or on your own.”

Swann said those that stop by the gym can get a free day pass, either in-store or online. 

MSU SpikeBall Club

Electrical Engineering senior Andrew Perez, president of the MSU SpikeBall club, spoke about his love for the game and the organization.

“The SpikeBall club is really just a big group of people sharing their love for the game SpikeBall,” Perez said. “I started getting into Spikeball during COVID when there was really nothing else to do but playing around with my friends. I went off to college and came here.”

Perez said he joined the club during his freshman year, and it largely contributed to his love and passion for the game. 

“It’s a great way to meet new people,” Perez said. “I met a lot of my through this club. It gives you a hobby and something to do so you’re never bored.”

Perez said one of the benefits of joining MSU SpikeBall club is not only meeting new people and making connections but to getting the opportunity to explore the campus and other places.

“We also compete in a lot of tournaments,” Perez said. “We host tournaments and events here at MSU but we also go to collegiate tournaments out of state where we go and play other teams and other schools. It’s a great way to represent your school and to play SpikeBall.”

Associated Students of Michigan State University

Nursing senior Connor Le, president of the Associated Students of Michigan State University, or ASMSU, explained the student governments’ main responsibilities and resources that are available to freshmen and other MSU students.

“ASMSU is the undergraduate student government at Michigan State University,” Le said. “The main thing that we do for students is provide lots of free services to take advantage of. We have our Safe Ride program, which is a late-night Uber system that operates from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. every day of the week. If you ever need a ride to anywhere in the East Lansing area, it’s free and you can get one from Safe Ride.”

Le said the organization also provides students free subscriptions to newspapers like The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. The organization also offers free calculators, free exam booklets and free legal services among other things.

Speaking more about ASMSU, Le spoke about the legislative branch of the organization: the general assembly.

“We are made up of representatives of every school,” Le said. “The main objective of the general assembly is to advocate for students by advocating for legislation. If anyone is interested in joining, they can contact us."