Common room for Outreaching students

On the ground floor of the Reitse Poort building, the common room of the Honors Outreaching Program has officially been opened. It was a festive event, during which rector magnificus Emile Aarts praised the honors students – and put them to work.

The outreaching program is a program for top students who pursue leadership and societal engagement. Each year, 50 new second-year Bachelor’s students start the program, finishing it within two years. It’s an intensive, interactive and pragmatic program that matches well with the university’s motto of ‘Understanding Society’.

The opening of the common room attracted many students. The room was decorated with buntings, and there were alcohol-free drinks and crisps. The new director of the program, Ianika Tzankova, charmingly introduced Emile Aarts, causing an amusing back-and-forth between them on the importance of the outreaching program. The rector is working on the encouragement of students to get involved in social entrepreneurship, which is one of the reasons why the outreaching program will be reformed. He considers the common room as a hotbed of ideas, and he has high expectations of the students: “With our support and your way of working, we will be the driving force behind social enterprises.”

The honors students are expected to deliver – otherwise the free coffee from the vending machine in the common room will be taken away again, Aarts jokingly said. After the rector left, the attendees were finally able to feast upon the crisps and the event moved on to the presentation of the projects.

Photos: Casper Groenink

_Advertentie.