The Student Activities Board (SAB) hosted a campus state fair on the Heritage Plaza Lawn, featuring rides, games, food and entertainment for students.

Haley Cummings, assistant director of student activities and SAB adviser, said the event was designed to give students a break from academics and a chance to connect. 

“It’s about creating joy and building a sense of community,” Cummings said. 

She said the event also allows SAB leaders to develop and implement their own ideas. 

“I hope students walk away with great memories, a stronger sense of belonging and the feeling that they’re part of something special here at A-State,” Cumming said. 

This year’s fair included a petting zoo, DJ set, airbrush hat stand, state fair food and carnival rides. 

LeslieJo Sullivan, SAB’s director of campus tradition, said planning began earlier this semester.

“We ensured that is something students are excited about by having many favorite activities from years past such as petting zoo, while also bringing in many fun surprises such as the airbrush hats,” the junior criminology major from Little Rock said. 

She said SAB gathered student input through Instagram polls during the planning process.

“The state fair is a great opportunity for students to have a fun night and have a much-needed break before finals,” Sullivan said. 

Students were required to check in on the A-State app to receive wristbands and tickets. Each student received three tickets: a red ticket for an entree (chicken strips with fries or corn dog), a blue ticket for dessert (fried oreos or funnel cake) and a white ticket for lemonade, which was limited to the first 500 attendees. 

Louis Gonzalez, a junior biology major from Kansas City, Missouri, said he returned this year after enjoying the previous state fair. 

“It was fun last year, it is looking fun this year, we got some nice music, got some good food going around, some catfish,” Gonzalez said. 

He said campus events are often under-promoted. 

“There are a lot of events going around, a lot of nice things, cool things going around, a lot of free things going around that people just don’t know about,” Gonzalez said. “If we just have more or better promotion or better student engagement, it would be a much more lively and fun campus.”

Gabrielle White, a sophomore wildlife, fisheries and conservation major from Paragould, said she also attended last year’s event and noticed an increase in activities this time. 

She said the rides and funnel cake were her favorite parts and that campus events like this one help reduce stress before finals. 

White said she appreciates the variety of events on campus and their broad appeal.

“We are so diverse, we have so many different people coming in and so many different activities catering to a broader audience, such as the international folks here on campus,” White said. 

Gonzalez said he appreciated the involvement of other student organizations, including ROTCS, which brought a punching bag game. Additionally, he said the state fair is a great way to bring a lot of people together, to have fun and meet new people. 

“It’s really shaping the unity of the campus,” Gonzalez said. 

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