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Swag Cab is a budding event implemented
by the Ball State University Residence Hall
Association (RHA) in collaboration with the
University Police Department (UPD). The physical
Swag Cab is a golf cart provided by the UPD and is
driven by an officer from the department. As the
Swag Cab makes its way around campus, rides are
offered to students and faculty on their way to
class, their Residence Hall, or meetings around
campus. As they ride, a RHA volunteer asks them a
series of Ball State related trivia questions, and for
every question the rider answers correctly, they
receive Swag Cab themed prizes.
Swag Cab has the ability to become a strong
campus tradition, especially this year with an added date
during Homecoming week. The event not only builds Ball
State pride by allowing students to learn more about their
home institution, but also allows RHA to gain recognition
across campus. This event also creates bonds among the
students with the UPD officers, which allows the students
and faculty to recognize who is keeping them safe on
campus and makes them feel more comfortable to
approach an officer, whether it be for an issue or not.
Every time we host a Swag Cab on campus, we are able
to provide rides to around 50 students in two hours, and
also another 150 students at the Scramble Light during
that time. In total, RHA reaches about 500
students per Swag Cab.
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Ball State Residence Hall Association
had several goals in mind when
creating this program. The major
goal was to create an event that
would develop into an on campus
tradition. RHA, as it stood before
Swag Cab, was lacking a “staple
event” or an event that was
attributed to the organization. What
makes this event unique and
tradition-quality is the fact that it
goes to the students, rather than the
other way around. By changing the
programming model in this way,
and holding the event multiple
times a semester, Swag Cab is able
to reach more students each time,
and the awareness of the program
spreads more efficiently. We also
wanted to make sure that each
student was able to walk away from
this program with something
tangible in order to get students
excited about the program and its
future, as well as spread awareness
of RHA as an organization.
Another goal of this program was to
allow the University Police to expand
on their community policing
program. Community policing is the
process in which the UPD becomes a
part of the community of Ball State
and develops relationships with
students and faculty in order to
effectively maintain safety around
campus, and to better understand
campus culture. This is a major focus
of the UPD, and Swag Cab allowed
them to reach out to the community
in a new and exciting way, and
allowed them an amount of fast-
paced interactions with contestants.
This partnership allowed students to
begin to recognize these officers and
become more comfortable with their
presence on campus. In a time
where relationships with authority are
sometimes tumultuous, this program
allowed students to connect and feel
safe on the campus they call home.
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The program was first suggested at the RHA Executive Board Summer
Retreat, where the major subject of conversation was creating an entirely new
schedule of programs for RHA, which needed to be unique and not already
offered by another source on campus. Swag Cab was first implemented at the
end of the spring 2016 semester, and has continued into the fall 2016 semester.
The first step in the organization of this event was to procure a golf cart
for on-campus use. This is where the UPD came in. Community policing is a
subject that was first brought to RHA’s attention at a Cardinal Leadership
Roundtable, where presidents of organizations come together and discuss
strategies to move forward and to receive information about campus
resources. UPD Chief Jim Duckham explained the goal of community
policing, and RHA saw this as an opportunity to become involved with an
important part of campus. They were able to provide a golf cart, and an
officer for each shift to drive the cart. They were more than willing to do this
free of charge and were very excited to partner with our organization.
Prizes
100:
Stress Balls
Lanyards
Plastic cups
Drawstring
Bags
250:
T-shirts
designed with
RHA and Swag
Cab logos
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The questions we used were pulled from the Ball State University official
website in order to have accurate information about campus that was also fun
and challenging. The Activities Director of RHA was very thorough in her curating
of questions and ended up with 31 Ball State trivia facts for riders to answer. She
made sure that the questions were not too difficult as to discourage, but also
made them challenging enough that not every person got the top prize, which
was a t-shirt. But, no matter what, we always made sure that each contestant
was able to leave with something in order for them to remember Swag Cab.
We wanted to use this program as an opportunity to involve some of our
new representatives and also let them interact with the Executive Board outside
of a meeting setting. We had our representatives sign up with our Activities
Director to volunteer to set up, tear down, and ask questions at the Scramble
Light. Swag Cab is an event that does not require much volunteer power, but
still allowed some of the representatives to be involved and made the process
of Swag Cab easier all the same.
In order to reach a larger amount of students, and to have a base area to
store prizes, we also set up a trivia and prize location at one of the most highly
trafficked areas on Ball State’s campus; the Scramble Light. The Scramble Light is
a four-way crosswalk that is the main connection from one side of campus to the
other. By providing a station there, we were able to reach more students, and
allowed them to receive swag without a ride on the Cab. We also played music
throughout our time at the Scramble Light in order to draw people into a fun
atmosphere.
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Friday, September 23
Friday, October 7
Friday, October 21
9:45 am - Meet at RHA Office to gather prizes
10:00 am - Set up at Scramble Light
10:15 am - UPD and golf cart arrives
10:30 am - Swag Cab begins!
11:45 am - Golf cart returns to Scramble Light, clean
up begins
12:00 pm - All items returned to RHA Office
*This schedule is the same for all days of Swag Cab
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Most of our advertising for this program was done through the form of printed fliers.
The fliers, which are poster size, 13 by 17 inches, include the logo for RHA and Swag
Cab, and also the three dates we set for Swag Cab in the fall semester. This system
allowed our Public Relations Director to only have to create one item for all three
runs of the event, and not have to reprint a flier for each occurrence, especially
since they were so close together. This also saved the organization money on
printing.
Social media was also a very important element of advertising for Swag Cab. The first
time Swag Cab was implemented in the spring of 2015, the Assistant Director of
Marketing, Communication, and Technology for Housing and Residence Life sent
two of her interns to film and create a promotional video for Swag Cab, which we
used in many capacities leading up to each run of the program. We integrated this
video into our social media campaign for the event, while also sharing pictures of
swag that could be won throughout the event and a digital copy of the flier.
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Another tool we used in the implementation and advertising of this program
was branding. Ball State RHA has been going through a rebranding process
beginning last semester, and moving into this current semester. This rebranding
process included a color scheme or maroon and blue, and also a logo change. We
utilize Swag Cab as one of the first events to use this branding method, and, in the
process, a Swag Cab logo was also created. By placing this logo on all giveaways
and promotional materials, Swag Cab has begun to develop its own brand that
closely follows that of RHA. The event has slowly been gaining traction and notoriety
around campus, and is on it’s way to securing a place as a campus tradition.
After the first run of the event for the semester, we created a photo album on
Facebook that included photos taken by one of RHA’s talented advisors. The photos
were high quality and allowed students who participated to recognize themselves
and share the photo album. The album reached 943 people on Facebook through
shares and likes. Since this was at the end of our first run of Swag Cab for the
semester, the pictures seen by other students stimulated buzz around the , and also
made students excited to share their experience with Swag Cab.
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Expenses
T-Shirts $1125
Stress Balls $94
Lanyards $239.54
Cups $380
Frisbees $218
Drawstring
Bags $385
Promotional
Materials $238
Total $2,679.54
The funding for this program is written into the current RHA organizational
budget under the Activities line item, which contains $7000 total, or around
18% of the total budget. The RHA organizational budget is a combination of
an allocation from Housing and Residence Life based on the population of the
Residence Halls, and various fundraisers that RHA facilitates during the
summer, which includes selling carpets, linens, and care packages to new and
returning students.
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This event is still in its budding stages, but has created an
impact all the same. An event of this kind has not existed on Ball
State’s campus, and it has been well-received by students and
staff alike. Swag Cab bags and t-shirts can be seen all over
campus, demonstrating that the students appreciate the
practicality of the prizes they receive from participating in this
event. The reaction from the University Police has also been very
positive. They often tell us how much they enjoy the event, and
how students will ask them about when the next Swag Cab will
be happening and how they get the chance to participate.
UPD loves having the opportunity to interact with a wide range
of students, and this program is able to provide them that
chance.
Swag Cab has also allowed the RHA Executive Board to
directly interact with students on an individual level, which is
something that not many of our programs afford us. Being able
to brighten a student’s day with something as small as a stress
ball always makes the Executive Board members excited about
the program, and their enthusiasm translates to the students
that ride on the cab as well. The program is starting to make a
difference on campus, and is working its way to becoming a
strong campus tradition in the near future.
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This event can definitely be adapted to other
campuses across the nation. All you need is a
mode of transportation, some trivia questions, and
most importantly, some swag! Questions do not
have to be campus themed, but can be about
whatever is relevant for the university and campus
at the time. The giveaways, of course, can vary
depending on budget and necessity. The most
difficult part is finding and securing a golf cart, or
some form of transportation in general. Reaching
out to UPD worked well for us, and is good place
to start, but each campus has a different
relationship with their campus police force, so the
results may vary. Being sure to check on your
campus’s restrictions on golf carts and other
vehicles is an important step as well. We hope this
event is one that you can adapt and transform
into your own, and one that will be as beneficial
to you as it was to Ball State.
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Something that we would
like to keep in mind for the future
is the golf cart battery. The cart
can only go about an hour
without having to rest for a
charge. We have had to be very
stringent when it comes to
battery use, and we have had to
cut the time of Swag Cab down
some due to the issue. We are in
the process of working with the
UPD on a system that could
extend the length of the event,
and allow us to reach more
students. Our hope is to be active
during more of the busy hours of
the day instead of just the
morning, and stretching the life of
the golf cart battery is an
important step in that process.
Overall, this event is something that RHA truly enjoys putting on
and is an authentic event to our campus. By reaching both the goals of
creating tradition and benefitting the community policing model, the
event is very successful with room to grow. We cannot wait to see how
Swag Cab develops as it cements itself as a unique campus tradition.
We also want to change up
some of the questions. We hope to
expand to themed days of
questions as the year goes on,
which will not only expand our
range of questions, but also the kind
of prizes we can give. For example,
we have the idea of creating a
holiday themed Swag Cab, and
with giveaways including hats,
scarves, and even socks. Expanding
our questions will allow a wider
range of students to fully participate
and add some intrigue to the event.
We also hope to create another
promotional video and more
promotional graphics that can
reach campus through social
media. Our social media reach has
grown significantly throughout the
year, and we want to take
advantage of that growth with new
promotional materials.
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Dear GLACURH, I am writing on behalf of my absolute favorite program here at Ball State: Swag Cab. Swag Cab is a social program that goes on multiple times a semester that consists of a golf cart, driven by a police officer, taking students to class while they answer questions about BSU for a chance to win awesome swag! I was actually a part of the original planning for this event, at a time when RHA was very lost in direction and was lacking dynamic and interesting program that was interesting for the students. I am thrilled that it has come to fruition so soon and has been so well received by all the students and faculty who participate in the event. Swag Cab is very unique, and I believe that this dynamic program brings joy to a wide variety of students each time it happens. Questions range from, how many bells are in the bell tower, to how many acres does the campus sit on. RHA has partnered with our UPD to make this program come alive. The officers that donate their time are often happy to do it, and hilarious to boot. The students get to interact with different officers and sometimes ask questions about their job. It is a great way to bring students closer to the officers that protect them and show that they are only on campus to help them. The students have truly taken to this event, and the officers as well. This amazing program could not have been made possible without the help of multiple people, especially the Executive Board. So much work has been put into the past two years, under the tutelage of a new president and advisor, to grow RHA into something that is recognized by the majority of students on campus. Swag Cab seems to be RHA’s crowning achievement thus far, and as the Vice President of the organization, I can honestly say, this is the best, most dynamic social program I have ever been a part of. Best Regards, Abby Peters Vice President Residence Hall Association
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