Board of Programmers
What is BOP?
The Board of Programmers is a student- run organization that plans a majority of the events at Providence College. We are made up of nine committees and an executive board, each geared toward planning a variety of events to meet every student’s interests. Committees include entertainment, fine arts, travel, social, etc. We organize and sponsor some of PC’s biggest and most popular events, including Clam Jam and the Spring Concert as well as 15-20 other on and off-campus events each month. These include Tuesday Timeouts, lectures, weekend programming, and films to name a few. The Board of Programmers’ goal is to enrich your immersion in the PC community by bringing you the most fun and diverse events to make the most of your four years at Providence College. Come stop by our office anytime in Lower Slavin 12 across from McPhail’s! Planned by Students for Students like you!
Want to Join? Recruitment Process
- Attend our informational coffeehouse in the middle of the spring semester. Here, you’ll learn more about the organization of BOP, the different committees, and the application process itself. Members will be present to meet and offer advice following a brief presentation.
- Submit your application to the BOP Office. The application is full of opportunities to demonstrate creativity, dedication, and work ethic.
- Group interview sign-ups will take place when application is submitted. Group interviews are with three other applicants with a few current board members as interviewers.
- Final individual interviews take place with the future executive board. The future executive board makes the final selection once all of the individual interviews have been completed. Typically, about 20 new members are selected.
Enrichment Opportunities (Reasons to Join)
- Personal development: BOP offers an opportunity for you to better yourself and improve your knowledge of how much work goes into planning and marketing events. This will prepare you for future plans and work opportunities in life. Not only will it prepare you for the professional world but also improve your knowledge of everyday life. It will dramatically improve your public speaking skills, leadership qualities, and help you work more efficiently in groups.
- Conferences (NACA): NACA is an amazing opportunity to expand your knowledge and get entertained in the process! Every year, BOP is provided with the opportunity to attend this conference that brings together all different programming boards from various schools. You get to see and book different acts including various singers, DJ’s, comedians, magicians, etc. There is also a large selection of educational sessions in which you can improve your programming skills and gain knowledge from different schools of how they program where they’re from! It’s a chance to expand and grow and also show off the success of our school as well!
- Retreat: Retreat is a chance for board bonding that takes place once a year for a weekend (traditionally during the fall semester). It is an opportunity for every member to appreciate each other and acknowledge what each person does for each other. After retreat, you have gotten to know your board members much better and become significantly closer to each person.
Committees
The Board of Programmers is made up of nine committees and an executive committee which are listed below. As you browse through the individual committee pages, you will read about what each committee is responsible for and what their goals are. Each committee has a different mission and focus regarding the types of events that are planned to provide the student body with a well-rounded co-curricular experience.
Executive Committee
The Board of Programmers Executive Committee oversees the planning and execution of all the events put on by the Board of Programmers. Our role as Executive Members is three-fold: guiding, connecting, and providing for the future of BOP. As a committee, we act as mentors to Board members throughout the planning process, serving as a resource for information and fostering creativity. We provide a bridge between administration and the Board to ensure that we are following programming procedures in order to make our members’ ideas a reality and our events a success. We also maintain constant contact with other club executives on campus to facilitate collaboration in the form of co-sponsorships. Our Committee encourages our members to hone their leadership skills by taking advantage of structured opportunities and investing their time, talent, and energy into the events that they plan. The final piece of our role as an Executive Committee is selecting the new members of the Board for our prospective school year, ensuring that we have a mix of creativity and talent that adequately represents the student body.
Social Committee
As a committee, we want to put on different events that appeal to the whole student body and get students to intermingle with other students they may not have met. It is our plan to use our events to grow and foster relationships between the different classes here at Providence College in order to help further and maintain the family feel our campus has.
Travel Committee
The Board of Programmer’s Travel committee is committed to providing students of the college an alternative to on-campus events and exposes them to all of what the New England area has to offer. Our goal is to engage students of all grades and backgrounds in cultural and educational hands-on experiences, team building and communication events, and to have a greater appreciation of the city in which they live for the four years during their time at Providence College.
Fine Arts Committee
The goal of the Fine Arts committee is to present students with the opportunity to enrich their college experience through cultural events on, and off, campus. We provide a wide range of events in which we aim to engage the entire student body. From performances and shows, to workshops and hands on learning, Fine Arts strives to better the Providence College community and expand their knowledge of the arts.
Tuesday Time Out Committee
Tuesday Timeout events are a time to relax with your friends every other Tuesday night. Usually occurring in McPhail’s, students are encouraged to come by, participate in a craft, watch a performance, take part in an activity or grab a snack. Seasonal events are a regular occurrence as students are encouraged to get festive and in the PC spirit! Traditional events include Paint Your Own Fishbowl, Galentine’s Day, and A Christmas A-Cappella show.
Entertainment Committee
The goal of the Entertainment committee is to successfully provide concerts that will appeal to the whole student body and will provide an opportunity for students to enjoy and experience the best and most captivating artists on campus. In the past we have had artists such as TimeFlies, Jason Derulo, Jack’s Mannequin, and Avicii. Keep an eye out for the performer we will have this spring!
Lecture Committee
We, as a committee, would like to present speakers to campus that students can relate to and hopefully have heard of in some way. We feel that by attempting to take away the stereotypes of what our college has become known for and balancing it with people who can represent messages regarding what we should strive to be and strive to learn will generate the most success and impact on campus.
Weekend Programming Committee
Weekend Programming’s mission is to provide fun and interactive activities for students Friday-Sunday Nights. Some events in the past year include: Cosmic Bowling, Country Night, Pumpkin Fest, Great Gatsby Night, Turkey Bowl, and Christmas Crafts Night. We would like every student at Providence College to feel welcome and interested to coming to late night events. In addition, it is our personal goal that before they go to bed, every student at PC be looking forward to the next weekend. We are always open to new ideas so if you have anything in mind, feel free to contact us!
Diversity Committee
The mission of the Diversity committee is to plan events that provide opportunities for students to self-reflect on their own differences, to gain information about other perspectives, and to leave with a better understanding of diversity. We also strive to broaden the cultural perspective of Providence College students and to challenge their presumptions of others in order to strengthen the feeling of community on campus. Some past events include Lunar New Year, Maki Your Own Sushi, Dr. Michael Fowlin’s “You Don’t Know Me Until You Know Me” lecture on stereotypes, a martial arts demonstration with Master Wen-Ching Wu, and the Unity Week Photo Contest.
Marketing Committee
The marketing committee is responsible for many of the advertising you see daily on campus. We use creative marketing strategies that we hope will reach all of the students on campus. We also aim to start planning marketing events to change the way people perceive the Marketing committee as not simply just advertising. So be sure to look out for future marketing planned events! This website was a joint effort between all of the committees but we initiated and worked through everything to make it possible for students to constantly be on top of what BOP is working on currently. We keep in constant contact with all of the committees to ensure all students are aware of all our amazing events!
The Board of Programmers is advised by the Office of Student Engagement and Leadership