What it Means to Show Up

It should be a renowned Santa Clara Saturday when Division I athletics games, performing arts shows and student organization events are occurring across campus. You’ve got your diehards, your loyal followers, family and friends in attendance. But there’s one noticeable absence: the students. Santa Clara isn’t a hotbed of a raucous student environment in crowds. Not for sports, theatrical performances, nor general events.

As a smaller school with roughly 6,000 undergraduates, our mausoleum crowds stick out like a sore thumb. For example, while the University of Michigan has around 30,000 undergrads, only about 13,000 show up! That’s not even half of the student population, and yet the perception is drastically different. For example, if even 10% of the student body showed up for any given game, performance or event on campus, that’s 600 people energizing the environment. However, the culture surrounding these events consists of primarily, “eh, I’ll pass, I have better things to do.”

I cannot stress enough that there is nothing wrong with that at the individual level. People may not like sports, theater or the topic of a particular event. That is fine. But for the campus to wholly disengage from supporting those who are putting in the work in more ways than one leaves a sour taste in my mouth. 

There’s little reason why students can’t show up to events other than the men’s basketball game against Gonzaga, a postseason tournament women’s soccer match or the culmination of a winter play. This student body can be better for one another. First years have spent a good month getting to know each other, seniors only have one last hurrah and sophomore/juniors are experiencing all that college has to offer. San Francisco and San Jose will always be there. The opportunity to support your fellow Broncos will not.