Catchy tunes from artists such as LMFAO, Ke$ha, Kings of Leon and The Black Eyed Peas resonated throughout the campus green, completely transforming it into a carnival. KSU Day was complete with rides, booths, snacks and games as faculty and students got to enjoy the festivities on April 12.
The annual event, sponsored by the Kennesaw Activities Board, in conjunction with KSU Residence Life and the KSU Alumni Association, featured a Ferris wheel, one-on-one basketball shootout, mechanical bull, rock climbing wall, miniature golf, photo booth, carnival games, airbrush tattoos and a zipline.
“It was fun and refreshing. All of my class stress is gone!” said freshman math education major Allan Stewart after his experience on the zipline.
Although the day was chillier than expected, attendance was high, as hundreds of students showed up to relieve a little stress before final exams.
Celebrating his own personal holiday, sophomore communications student Ross Wesely decided he would enjoy the festivities and most notably, riding the mechanical bull in a white robe. It’s Robe Thursday!” he remarked excitedly after he fell off the bull.
Slightly separate from the majority of the festivities, a ferris wheel was placed near the convocation center. The 10 seat ferris wheel was one of the most popular attractions during the event.
“I had a lot of fun, I was trying to rock the seat during the ride,” Junior middle grades education major Kristen Yvonne said.
The carnival concluded and students moved into the Carmichael Student Center for a “Casino Night”.
A roulette board, craps table, two Texas Hold ‘Em tables and several blackjack tables were spread throughout for participants as music pumped into the “casino”.
The helpers were decked out in typical casino fashion and each “dealer” sported the traditional white dress shirt with bowties as they led their table’s game.
Each student was given a mock bill worth $50,000. The goal of the night was simple: to earn as much money as possible.
Winners of the festivities were awarded with raffle tickets. For every $200,000 a student earned, it was redeemed for a ticket. More earnings meant more chances for the grand prizes.
The seven grand prizes consisted of a $50 Wal-Mart gift card, a $100 dinner and a movie gift card, two iPod Shuffles, a Kodak camera, a blu-ray player and the most coveted prize of the night, a Wii gaming system.
There were several other opportunities to earn cash for those who weren’t as lucky with cards or dice. An intense game of Simon Says was played, in which two players walked away with a stack of mock $2 million.
T-Shirts and money were thrown to participants on the dance floor throughout the many dance-offs throughout the night. Four winners of one particular dance-off each won $2 million for their best “Casper Slide” dance.
An Xbox and a Wii lined each side of the room for students to duel against each other, as well as the photo booth from the carnival for students
to take home memorabilia from the event.
At the end of the evening, a raffle was drawn for the grand prizes, in which exercise health and science senior Aamirah Wilson walked away with the most coveted grand prize of a brand new Nintendo Wii, complete with controllers and a Super Mario Bros. game.
“I’ll probably give it to my family. I have a big family at home and they would love this. My dad’s been wanting to get a Wii for a long time,” Wilson said.
Whether they quadrupled their chips or walked away learning to stay away from
Vegas, the vibe in the air was full of fun and energy as many students danced, made friends and cheered each other on as they won mass sums of “money” and prizes.
