Keri Carroll is the only student from her high school’s 2008 graduating class who came to Eastern.

“I moved in a day early and so my roommate wasn’t here yet,” Carroll, a freshman pre-veterinary major, said. “I didn’t know anybody.”

But Carroll said that quickly changed.

She attended Quakin’ the Quad, sponsored by University Board, on Saturday night with some girls she met in her residence hall. Carroll said the event forced her to step outside of her comfort zone.

“Stuff like (Quakin’ the Quad) where you have to go out and meet people, it’s really nice,” Carroll said. “Everyone’s really friendly, and it makes you feel supported.”

Feisty Fiesta was the theme for this year’s Quakin’ the Quad, which ran from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m.

The evening featured Mexican cuisine such as nachos and Horchata, a traditional Mexican rice drink.

“It actually tastes like the milk left over after you eat Cinnamon Toast Crunch,” said Andrew Hubbard, UB’s special events coordinator.

Students got the chance to ride a mechanical bull, learn how to salsa dance and play bingo, while being serenaded by a Mariachi band.

“We just wanted to bring new things, a whole lot of different flavors for people who have never experienced anything like this,” Hubbard said.

Carroll’s roommate, Brittany Host, said she was surprised to see how many events were planned on campus for move-in weekend.

“It’s a great way to meet new people,” Host said, a freshman biology major. “And it’s not just freshmen, you’re meeting upperclassmen, too, who have experience and so you can ask them questions about life here and classes.”

Shannon Cobb, a junior business marketing major, transferred to Eastern this semester.

As a member of the football team, he already knew some people coming to the university, but, like Host, he saw Quakin’ the Quad as an opportunity to make some new friends.

“It brings everybody out for like your first time,” Cobb said. “You get to meet everybody and mingle. It’s a good way to break people in so when you see them on campus you can actually have a conversation.”

Cobb said at first, he thought Quakin’ the Quad would be lame, but added once he got to the event, he had a blast.

“It gives you something to do,” Cobb said. “You know, in Charleston there’s not that much to do, especially when you’re not from here, and so it opens you up for the weekend.”

Cobb’s teammate Adrian Arrington agreed.

“We just got out of football camp, so this is the only time we really get to have fun,” Arrington, a senior therapeutic recreation major said. “We’re out here with the new players.having fun and meeting new people.”

UB’s next event is an outdoor double feature on Sept. 5, featuring “Speed Racer” and “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.”

Barbara Harrington can be reached at 581-7942 or at bjharrington@eiu.edu.

Performers from the group Salsa Magic, which features interactive lessons and performance, teach Latin dance moves to volunteers on Saturday night. The show was part of Quakin’ the Quad, an annual event in the South Quad. (Karolina Strack/The Daily Easter

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