Events on campus take a lot of manpower to put on, and Code Red is responsible for providing that manpower.
Code Red is an organization under the Utah Tech Student Association, and each branch of UTSA has a Code Red team. The teams are student volunteers who assist in planning and running events on campus.
Director of Code Red Jimena Roque, a sophomore elementary education major from Wells, Nevada, said the main goal of Code Red this year is expansion.
In previous years, Code Red has just been a part of the student life branch of UTSA. This year they have expanded Code Red to be involved in each branch including the executive council, academic senate, clubs and organizations, student life, marketing, service, and Stampede. This allows the students to help out with activities and events that are related to their interests.
For example, a student interested in marketing can choose to volunteer on the Code Red team for the marketing branch of UTSA.
“It’s like a stepping stone,” said Student Body President Jose Toral-Martinez, a senior communication studies major from St. George. “It gives you that experience and gets you going to see if there’s something you want to do in the future, like part of a leadership position.”
He also said the organization is a fun way to meet new friends, and it gives students an opportunity to live up to the motto “active learning. active life.”
Code Red gives students chances to get involved. Since Code Red is a volunteer organization, there is no specific time commitment. This allows students to choose how involved they want or are able to be.
Toral-Martinez said they usually get the most involvement from freshmen because they are the most eager to get involved and often have the most free time to commit to the organization.
Riley Ford, a freshman engineering major from St. George, said he joined Code Red for a few reasons. The first being that it looks good on applications, but the main reason was to get involved on campus and make more friends.
“I didn’t do much in high school,” Ford said. “I wanted to kind of start over, and I thought this would be a good way to do that.”
Students who participate in Code Red have a chance to develop their social skills and make the most of their college experience by taking part in student activities. Code Red allows students to step out of their comfort zone, and those who aren’t the most outgoing can find a safe place to meet people.
Code Red is also an opportunity for students who want to give back to their community. While Code Red as a whole is mainly geared toward student events, the service Code Red team also looks to serve within the community.
The volunteer work done by students in Code Red is valuable to campus and a huge factor in being able to have student-run activities. Without the help of Code Red volunteers, these events might not be possible.
Students looking to get more involved in campus activities should consider joining Code Red. Applications can be found on the UTSA Instagram page and the Utah Tech University website.
