New Platform for Clubs

By Sophie Quiñones, Staff Writer

This semester, Promise will release a brand new platform for students and clubs on campus. This new website, Experience Shark Nation, is a more accessible way for students to stay involved with clubs and events happening on campus. The platform states that “getting connected to opportunities, experiences, and the LIU Community has never been easier.”

Experience Shark Nation is branded as a place for both students and clubs to find information and events. Students can use the service to “Find or create a club, get involved in service, and receive Shark Points that can be cashed in for LIU Gear and other prizes,” according to the Shark Nation website. Though it is not yet being advertised to students, clubs have trained on how to use it. 

“[Promise] went over it at club training and walked us through some of its features and how to create a profile for our club. I think it’s easy to access and easy to navigate,” senior psychology major Nicole Ludwig and president of the Rainbow Alliance said.

On Sept. 18, Promise held a meeting for the e-boards of every club on campus. At this meeting, Promise presented the e-boards with the new COVID-19 guidelines for club events as well as a walk-through of Experience Shark Nation.

The new platform has more features and a new streamlined design compared to the old platform that it is replacing.

“The last platform was a TinyURL link where a bunch of important links were listed,” Ludwig said. “It wasn’t set up somewhat like a social media site like this one, it was just a bunch of links.” 

Senior musical theatre major, and president of the Emerging Student Theatre Artists club, Jaclyn Holiday is also a fan of the new design.

“The old website was specifically for submitting forms whereas on the new website you get to see all the different clubs and what they’re up to,” Holiday said. “This layout is much more concise and organized.”

Club leaders are using this website to reach out to students on campus. With COVID-19 regulations, there is an added challenge to clubs trying to recruit new members. 

“[The Coalition for Conservation] will be using it to list events and act as a means to connect with potential members,” Julie Williams, a junior acting major and president of The Coalition for Conservation club, said.