DAWG PACK EmPoWeRmEnT Committee takin' the "Streets"

As the end of the year nears, and spring sports wrap up, the Street Team has no choice but to reflect on the past year. What worked? What didn’t? We laugh off the mishaps and begin to plan for the 2014-2015 school year.

Street Team, as many of you know was brand new. Never before did the Husky Athletic department have a team that represented the student body, a team that was meant solely to help raise attendance at Husky Athletic sporting events.  We scrambled to find traction throughout the year and a lot of our efforts were on a trial and error basis. Flyers, hot chocolate, cookies, free appearal...everything! Nevertheless we learned a lot, and now have a better taste of what Street Team can do to really make a difference next year.

Throughout this past year, through our various marketing techniques we were able to see that there was one motivating force that drove students to the games beyond the next big give-away. We found that students will go to events when other students do. Great! How do we identify these “influencers” and once we do, how can they help us raise the Dawg Pack attendance.

The conversation of a Dawg Pack influencer usually goes somewhat like this;

“Hey, want to go to the softball game with me?” “Sorry bro, I don’t have any money to spend” “Dude, it’s free with a student card, meet down at the field in ten”

Or,

“Hey girls the men’s baseball team is ranked 6^th right now, lets get down there and go support the team”

These influencers are crucial to the student section’s participation because here at the University of Washington, its not like we students don’t love our Universities sporting events, it’s just easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of things. Sometimes we need a friends’ encouragement to take a break from studying, or a buddy to walk down the athletic facilities when it’s dark and rainy out.

Street Team’s major plan this spring as we launch into the new year is to reach out to these influencers, and together, hopefully create and sustain high attendance at the athletic events.

Last Friday we reached out to a few loyal Dawg Pack members and we had a great response.

It’s called the Dawg Pack empowerment Committee; a selected group of influencers that help make important decisions that will hopefully raise morale and participation of the Dawg Pack. The Committee will get to help design t-shirts and other apparel, brainstorm promotions, share ideas and concerns, and the best part get to indulge in free food!

I spoke with Sarah Garson, a Dawg Pack influencer who volunteered to take part in next years push to raise attendance at games. “I think this is a good idea, there are so many people that can help by just asking their friends to come with them.”

As of right now the Street Team has about 30 influencers, but we are looking for more! If you are passionate about Husky Athletics, and feel like you could make a difference for the Dawg Pack please contact us! You passed the first test already, taking action!

The next Dawg Pack Empowerment Committee meeting will take place next Friday 5/30.

Sarah Merion, a fellow Street Team member, and next years Street Teams leader says she’s “excited for the brainstorm sessions, we want to hear what the Dawg Pack has to say!” 

Although this year is coming to a close, and events are winding down, I am excited for what is in store for next year, especially with the Dawg Pack Empowerment Committee. I think these proud huskies are the influencers we need to make next years seasons ones for the books! 

ANNNNNND we out

Natalie 

Dawg Pack; This Is Why The Windermere Cup Should Be Important To You.

By Natalie Gilbert

The excitement that brews for opening day and the Windermere cup stems way beyond our campus.

Not only is it a chance to watch our fellow classmates take to the Husky-infested water and compete against some of the world’s finest, but it also marks opening day for boating season, which brings even more Washingtonians together beyond the classmates you see every day.

When spring quarter rolled around my freshmen year of college and I mentioned when I was home one weekend that I would be attending some “rowing race” my dad rudely corrected me, explaining, “ I think you mean the Windermere Cup.” This launched into a 20-minute history lesson, and a stroll down memory lane for pops.

He remembered watching the race with his fraternity brothers when he went to UW 100 years ago. He said it was a huge event, one that nobody wanted to miss. He still made it a point to go every year although he misses the water balloon fight between the boats in the parade and the people lining the sides after the races were over. (DAWG pack, can we please re-instate this?)

Fast-forward to last week, the Friday before the Windermere Cup, my fellow Street Team members and I were taking the streets of campus, promoting the event and trying to accumulate followers for the Street Team’s social media sites. I asked a few students on campus if they knew what the Windermere Cup was, and although I will ignore the few blow-off’s (I remember who you are) I am proud to announce that my fellow student body knew a lot about the event.

Just to make it interesting, I occasionally asked what they thought a crew race was called (only because I didn’t know what it was called for a long time). Here were the best answers: competition, match, game, and face-off. A crew race is in fact called a regatta.

During the Windermere Cup, the Husky Street Team posted up behind the very full student section giving away Chipotle gift cards to our Twitter followers. I was unable to sit down and talk to any of the rowers on Saturday (they seemed a little busy), but I did get a chance to stand next to an alums and hear her thoughts on the Cup.

Standing about a foot taller than me, she explained that when she used to come down the cut she couldn’t hear anything because the crowd was so loud. She told me the cut acted like an amphitheater and that “it was exhilarating.” I could barely hear her, due to the same effect the students were creating as a race advanced to the finish line.

The exhilarating moments and memories that are created here at the Windermere Cup start with us. People come from all over Washington (and apparently Great Britain) come to watch athletes perform, and students should be a part of this experience as well. The University of Washington and the outstanding athletics events provide a perfect platform to create our own memories that will hopefully keep us coming back in the years to come too. This is what makes the UW the best school in the nation, and this is why you are proud to be a Husky.

The Windermere Cup creates and brings together a community. This is why the Street Team encourages you to take part in these events, because they can mean something to you, too. 

Check out the Seattle Times photo gallery from last Saturday: 

http://seattletimes.com/html/photogalleries/localnews2023525126/