Haunted Harvest 2013 Summary
Overview: Haunted Harvest was held on October 25, 2013 in conjunction with several Oglesby Union events, including the FSU High Flying Circus Halloween show, Paint-a-Pot, Pumpkin Carving, Breakfast for a Buck, films at the Student Life Cinema and cosmic bowling. The event was free to FSU students with a valid gold FSU ID. While many specific events had individual event times, the majority of events occurred between 7:00pm-12:00am. Campus Partners and Planning Committee: This event is planned by a committee consisting of staff members from the Student Activities Center, the Art Center, Crenshaw Lanes, the Student Life Center, Flying High Circus, Union Marketing, and Union Administration. Student leaders on Union Productions also serve on the committee. Representatives from Inter- Residence Hall Council (IRHC), Red Cross Noles, and Student Alumni Association (SAA) also attended the meetings to ensure that co-sponsorships fit seamlessly with the rest of the Haunted Harvest events. Invitations have also been extended to Greek Life, Residence Life, Aramark, and Campus Recreation in an attempt to bring other campus partners in on the planning. The committee was chaired by the Graduate Intern for Alcohol-Free Programming. Event List: • Final Fridays Gaming Social- Askew Student Life Center; 6pm • Dead Man’s Dash (Sponsored by Red Cross Noles)- W. Call Street and Stadium Drive; 6-7pm • Pumpkin Carving- Union Green; 6:30pm (Judging at 11pm) • Haunted Carnival- Union Courtyard; 7pm-12am o Carnival Rides (Union Green) o Psychics o Face Painting o Balloon Artists o Raley’s Confectionary o Lansang Pinoy Food Truck o Dessert Buffet o Snow Cones, Cotton Candy, & Popcorn • Paint-A-Pot- Union Courtyard; 7pm, 8:30pm, and 10pm • Trick ORG Treat: Get a Taste of Involvement at FSU!- Union Courtyard; 7-10pm • Circus Halloween Show- FSU Flying High Circus Tent; 8pm • Concert- Union Green; 8pm • Ghost Tours (Sponsored by SAA)- Integration Statue; 8-10pm • Costume Chaos (Sponsored by IRHC)- Club Downunder; 8:30-10:30pm • Zombie Bowling- Crenshaw Lanes; 9pm-12am
• •
Breakfast For A Buck- Food Court; 11pm-2am Movie: Rocky Horror Picture Show- Student Life Cinema; 11:59pm
Event Attendance: Attendance was calculated by tracking the amount of wristbands that were distributed to faculty, staff, students, and non-students (members of the community), as well as other activities. The total amount of people that attended Haunted Harvest was 11,585. Survey Results: Of those students who attended Haunted Harvest, 487 students (5%) completed the survey. Demographics and Marketing
Classfication
1% 2%
Gender
0%
3%
No Answer 6%
Freshman
18%
42%
Graduate
16%
No Answer Male
Junior Senior
15%
28%
Sophomore
Female
69%
Transfer
Ethnicity
Residence No Answer
5%
2%
0% 16%
0%
18% 8%
51%
African American/ Black American Indian/ Native Alaskan Asian/ Pacific Islander White/ Caucasian Hispanic/ Latino Mixed Other
1%
No Answer
45% 54%
On-Campus Off- Campus
How did you hear about this event? 2% 1%
1%
3%
3%
3%
4%
13%
3%
1% 9% 3%
24%
4% 9% 17%
Banner Billboard Dining Hall Ad Door Hanger E-mail Facebook Flyer/ Poster in Residence Hall Friend/ word-of-mouth Newspaper Nole Central Promo items/ t-shirt Resident Assistant Table Tent Twitter Website Yard Signs
Why did you come to the event? 3% 12%
Enjoy the event(s) 40%
12%
Hungry/free food Learn about campus activities Meet new people/socialize
6%
Nothing else to do Other 27%
How many times have you been to Haunted Harvest before? 0% 7% 24% 69%
No Answer 0 1 -- 2 3+
Haunted Harvest was filled with different carnival rides, food vendors, and other activities. Out of a variety of valid written responses, the top three favorites of those surveyed were food-related, riderelated , and games and activities related. The main reasons people attended Haunted Harvest were to enjoy the event (40%) and because they were hungry and wanted free food (27%). The majority of those surveyed (88%) plan on definitely returning to Haunted Harvest next year. Recommendations for Next Year: • Begin the planning process for a Haunted House earlier, securing actors from the Theater Department, and increasing event signage so students know that an event is happening in the Ballrooms. • A hand washing station is essential for Pumpkin Carving at future events. • Paint a Pot needs to have smaller items and hold inventory to help with turnover of people. Shifts should be visibly posted so students are aware of the distribution. • Concerts should continue at Haunted Harvest but would be most effective and manageable if they are not headlining acts. • Continue the candy making, increase servings for food (if budget allows), and ensure food truck is visible to attendees. • Use directional signs to guide students in the Union. • Decorations should be purchased and incorporated into the event to support the Haunted atmosphere. • Zombie Bowling should only be advertised in Crenshaw Lanes if no other co-sponsorship events are occurring that evening. • The blacklight photo booth was a popular attraction in past years. Future planning committees could consider bringing this attraction back to the event. • More tables are needed for Paint-A-Pot and Pumpkin Carving. • Carnival Rides should be booked and contracted before advertised on event marketing. Conclusion Overall, the event was successful and continues to improve each year. This year, most food items were dessert (cotton candy, popcorn, snow cones, dirt cake, candy corn rice krispy treats, hard candy) and helped to drive traffic to the Breakfast for a Buck later in the evening. While most of the food options lasted long enough, most food ran out by 10:00PM. Trick ORG Treat enjoyed much success this year with the change in its name and location. The East Courtyard was a fantastic location and rated a success by RSOs and student attendees alike. Funds should be budgeted to allow for attractive prizes at Trick ORG Treat in an effort to increase RSO involvement. Pumpkin Carving is an important component for this fall-themed event. Many students appreciated having the Pumpkin Carving as it was not included at Haunted Harvest 2012. The only issues with Pumpkin Carving and Paint-A Pot this year, clogged sinks and an insufficient number of tables, can easily be fixed in future years. Carnival Rides are an important part of the event as they are large and visible on the Union Green. This pulls students who may see the rides from across campus over to the event. This year securing
a contract for the Carnival Rides proved to be very difficult. Future Haunted Harvest Planning Committees might consider using a laser tag dome, hay maze, or haunted house on the green to serve the same purpose if desired. However, contracts should be secured by late September, if possible.