By Grace Arneberg —
For Health, Wellness and Fitness students, living a healthy lifestyle is more than just a major. This semester, the HWF club welcomed University of Wisconsin–Stout students both in and out of the program.
“[Last year], we recognized that there was a need by other students,” said Andrew Alvarez, senior and HWF club president. “Because the major is fairly new, there isn’t a lot out there to complement it like there are for other majors. We knew a lot of students wanted more guidance in some way.”
The club was created to give students in the major a second resource to learn about the field, to connect with other students, to share experiences and ideas and to discuss professional options and opportunities.
Not only is HWF club a good opportunity networking and developing professionally, it is also great for developing personal friendships.
“It’s a good group of students who share a lot of interest in living a healthy lifestyle and being physically active,” said Alvarez. “It’s a great place to share information and learn about new studies or focuses in the area, as well as making new friends.”
Because the group is so new, it has had a bit of a slow start. According to Alvarez, the club’s current focus is more academic and informative than recreational, planning for HWF club’s long-term success.
The recent focuses have been on discussing professional options such as explaining certifications, compiling companies that are worth looking into and learning about LinkedIn. They also recently volunteered at Menomonie Free Health Day as well as the Blue Devil 5K.
“It was great to be able to give back to the community in a setting that fit our major and club,” said Alvarez.
The club would like to plan some fitness activities for the spring, such as outdoor games, tournaments and a 5K open to all Stout students.
“We’re looking forward to being able to do more next year,” said Alvarez. “The club should always assess what the members want, because some people may want different things. There’s a lot of room for new things.”
“If you’re interested at all, if you just want to get a feel for the club and see what we’re all about and meet some new people, feel free to stop in at one of our meetings and introduce yourself,” said Alvarez. “We’re not exclusive; we would love to have different skillsets and students who are in other majors and just interested in living a healthy lifestyle.”
The club meets every other Tuesday at 7 p.m. upstairs in the Sports and Fitness Center. For additional information, email Andrew Alvarez at alvareza0559@my.uwstout.edu and check out the club’s OrgSync page.