Rachel Marwedel
Website Manager
2024 has seen new clubs popping up, like new construction sites on campus. Here are four of them that you should check out:
Paranormal Research Club
Have you ever had a paranormal experience, but no one around you believed a word you said? Do you have an interest in otherworldly phenomena or want to research strange happenings? Then this might be the club for you!
Ben Bosteter, President, has always been into the paranormal, and Aide Negrete, Vice President, had a lot of paranormal experiences growing up. Aide was already a student, and Ben was onboarding into the university when, while looking into the clubs, they realized no club was dedicated to the paranormal. If that was the case, why not make one themselves?
The goal of the club is to educate people on paranormal phenomena and, secondarily, to assist people who are experiencing paranormal phenomena. “Our goal as a group is to learn and continue to learn about everything paranormal. If you have an interest or an experience, you would be totally welcome. A lot of the time, if you experience something, it’s hard to talk about it, but we won’t react badly at all,” Bosteter said.
This club meets twice monthly, doing everything from watching clips of fake paranormal phenomena and myth-busting them to talking about investigating methods to having discussions with outside mediums and psychics. They’re also starting a monthly movie series in the Bengal Theater, where they’ll play documentaries on paranormal phenomena. In addition to all that, they also conduct various other events, such as the seance they recently held in Frazier Hall.
“We volunteer at cemeteries to clean up as well,” Bosteter told me. “Doesn’t hurt to get good karma!”
If you’re interested in joining, dm their Instagram @isuparanormalresearchclub or email ude.usinull@retetsobneb. Follow them on Instagram to see upcoming events, which include a psychic fair where students and the public can come and learn about psychic phenomena, participate in psychic testing, and get their tarot read. They’ll also be hosting a paranormal open house in the spring semester, where students and the public can come and share personal unexplainable experiences, discuss the paranormal, and connect with our team for assistance.
“We really welcome all belief systems. Our goal is the examination of things that are out of explanation. Whether they are miraculous or scary, they still happen.”
Compassion & Hope Club
Kristen Halcomb, President, has been volunteering at the Compassion & Hope Pregnancy Club Center for over a year. During that time, she began conversing with leaders about how much of a disconnect there was between the Center and campus. “I got really invested in how to connect those two facets of my life. I want to connect ISU students with the amazing resources that the center offers. “ So, after much thought, Halcomb created the Compassion & Hope Club to create that connection.
The club’s goal is to inform, empower, and educate women and men regarding sexual health, relationships, pregnancy, abortion, and parenting. The club is closely tied with the Compassion & Hope Pregnancy Center on campus. Didn’t know that existed? Me neither! Halcomb recognized most students are like me. “Part of the reason we’re making this club is to get the message about this awesome resource.”
To educate and inform, the club holds tables and booths on campus, performs outreach on campus, and helps to get people to the center on campus (specifically those dealing with unplanned pregnancies). The club meets the second Monday of each month from 7-8 p.m. in the conference room above the Compassion and Hope Pregnancy Center. “Next semester we are excited to be able to help the Compassion & Hope Pregnancy Center with their 2025 Banquet For Life event and get even more involved with ISU’s campus and our community with other outreach projects.”
To join, contact Halcomb at ude.usinull@bmoclahnetsirk.
Student United Way of ISU
The only club on this list that was actually established last spring, Student United Way of ISU, focuses on service and volunteer work targeted toward the adolescent population.
“Our goal is to help young learners across our community and surrounding areas to be able to envision themselves as an ISU Bengal, and pursue any educational goals they have in their future, regardless of their background and walk of life. We want to give them the support they need.” President Kara Price told me.
Price currently serves in ASISU, which was how she was inspired to start the club. “I was brainstorming ways to foster community engagement with ISU, and I thought, what better way to do that than hanging out with younger children and teenagers and helping them feel connected to ISU? And then I remembered United Way already existed, and we could work with them at the university level.”
If you haven’t heard of them, United Way is a global non-profit organization that focuses on improving communities. Each region focuses on different things. Southeast Idaho United Way focuses on access to quality health care, early childhood education, and putting every community member on a path of financial stability. “They are a big sponsor of the Pocatello free clinic, where I volunteer, which is how I got to know them.”
Last spring, the club was able to do a shoe drive for the local Headstart. Currently, the club has regular monthly meetings where they plan future activities, like a volunteer week in the spring. They’re also working on brainstorming different ways that club members would like to volunteer within schools and in the community, specifically with younger populations. “We’re working on getting a volunteer page up, so that way anyone who wants to can go there and find different opportunities to volunteer with the time that they have.”
To join, either fill out the link at the bottom of https://unitedwaysei.org/home/get-involved/student-united-way/ or send a direct message to the club’s Instagram: @studentunited.isu
Why should you join? “Because who doesn’t want to make a difference in the life of a younger child? Or if you want a more practical reason, it sure looks good on a resume!”
Los Estudiantes Después
Los Estudiantes Después, translating to “The Students After” started off as a statewide initiative. “Poder,” an organization from Nampa, began the initiative by holding a conference to create structure for the next generation of Latine students with students from universities all across Idaho. Jennifer Vidales, President, was one of the attendees. After attending, she realized she wanted that kind of space at ISU as well. And so Los Estudiantes Después was born.
The club’s goal is to build a community of students, providing resources and political insight to Latine youth in Idaho. “I wanted to create a safe environment, a safe place…to learn what’s going on politically, to get resources, and to have fun and hang out,” Vidales explained.
“We meet biweekly with our members, every other Thursday at 5:30 (p.m.), mainly in the SUB. At the meetings, we discuss political issues, community issues, the news, and events. There’s snacks, and we do activities,” Vidales told me. “We partner with United Way Dream as well, and we’ve had the opportunity to work with them a lot.”
This year, the club has done the Lo Hacemos Juntos Fundraiser. “It was a fundraiser where we sold agua frescas, and we used that money to buy ingredients to make lunch to bring out to farmers and immigrant workers in Aberdeen.” The club also tabled “I Stand with Immigrants” and organized an event for Dia los Muertos in the SUB. For the next few months, the club will focus on updating everyone on the legislative session.
To join, DM them on Instagram at @led.isu or email ude.usinull@seladivrefinnej.
Joining a club at ISU is a great way to meet new life-long friends (or at least beef up your resume), and now there are more options than ever!
