Broncos dressed in their best attire flocked to the Bronco Student Center, Ursa Major (BSC, Bldg. 35-2611) for the Associated Students Inc.(ASI) year-end celebration, The Enchanted Gala on Friday, May 25. Beautiful roses, carnations, string lights and balloons adorned the event.
Real roses were displayed at the entrance of the gala
Gala-goers enjoyed a night of dancing to jazz from a live swing band and dancefloor favorites by DJ Insp!re. AnBella Tran, a fourth-year biology and business marketing student said, “I found out about the event because I follow ASI on Instagram! I didn’t think the event would be as organized as it was. This gala resembled my high school prom to a tee!”
DJ Insp!re played a mix of new songs and throwback jams that kept Broncos moving
Aside from dancing, Cal Poly Pomona students also took advantage of the unique activities offered at the gala, such as taking photos at the photo booth, being drawn by a caricature artist and visualizing their energy reflections from an aura reader.
Students could take their unique aura keepsake home
“The aura reader was something that we’ve never done before,” said Student Activities and Programs (SAP) Supervisor, April Castro. “Basically, the aura reader takes a picture of you, reads your aura by what colors you emanate and you get a keepsake photo to take home. It’s something that’s very unique and very different.” She continued, “Jenn Im, my biggest influencer, had a fashion line launch and had an aura reader at her launch event. I draw a lot of inspiration from all of YouTube influencers and vloggers when planning ASI events.”
Students looked picture-perfect in formal gowns
Why “The Enchanted Gala” theme you may ask? Castro, an aspiring wedding planner, explained, “This theme has been sitting in my mind for a while. Gardens have been a significant thing lately, so I thought, ‘why not bring the outdoors indoors?’ My goal was for everyone to have a night where they could dress up, feel good and just enjoy themselves. It’s week nine and everyone is stressed. Everyone always has a good time at prom or homecoming, so it was my goal to have something for everyone, where they can de-stress and come to a formal event.”
The flower-adorned entryway of the BSC, Ursa Major
Gala-goers also swarmed to the free food, which included finger sandwiches, bruschetta, cake pops, macarons and more desserts and small bites. Dana Eng, a fourth-year mechanical engineering student, said “My date was eventually able to snatch a macaron and a cake pop and they were bomb! I didn’t know I even liked macarons!” For future reference, however, she suggests, “I think there should have been more food. By 9 p.m. there was no food, which should be improved because we all had to RSVP.”
SAP and the Bronco Events and Activities Team (BEAT) welcome student suggestions for improvement. Castro added, “ASI does a really good job at enhancing a student’s life. We really try to take students’ interests into consideration when planning events.”
SAP and BEAT planned more than 80 events this academic year alone. Amy Fujioka, a third-year psychology student, said, “I have been to a lot of ASI events, but this was definitely such a memorable event and a great way to end my spring quarter.”
Students smiled as they were being drawn by a caricaturist
Castro urges students to take advantage of ASI’s free events. “It’s so different when you’re in your room watching Netflix, versus going out to an event. You never know who you’re going to meet so there’s always going to be something for someone there and ASI is the avenue for that,” she continued, “Just attending one event for one person can make a huge difference in their life. It’s just a matter of going and being open to the possibilities.”
Want to stay up-to-date with events like The Enchanted Gala? Get the inside scoop by following the BSC (Bldg. 35) on Facebook and Twitter.
