On Sep. 29, seventeen large pizzas were eaten in twenty-five minutes by psychology majors, minors, prospective psychology students and related faculty on the Main Hall Green. The food was a part of the Psychology Department Mixer, an event co-sponsored by LUPA, the Lawrence University Psychology Association and Lawrence’s psychology faculty, and is the first of many events planned by LUPA over the upcoming year.
Although psychology organizations have not had an incredible historical presence on campus, in recent years LUPA has expanded both its members and activities to foster a social and academic community for psychology students at Lawrence.
This passion is felt strongly by the board members, who spearheaded last year’s senior sendoff and the return of general meetings, and are in the process of making plans to bring in professionals linked to different areas of psychology for both psych students and the general student body.
“I think LUPA can be great for educating folks and students on different psychological areas and really enriching the community in an academic sense,” said president Daryian Matthews.
Matthews stated that LUPA will focus on psychology students but will also hopefully benefit the broader Lawrence student body in the process. Plans include bringing in a sports psychologist in Winter Term to discuss the psychology of being an athlete and performer, and possibly inviting a sex therapist to discuss sex therapy and psychology, an often-underrepresented field that can be filled with harmful misconceptions and stereotypes.
LUPA will cater more specifically to students within its major by reviving general meetings, once considered unnecessary due to low membership and turnout, and hopefully by providing platforms for students who researched in the field over the summer to share their findings in an environment of peers.
For those majoring in psychology, LUPA is planning on hosting a talk on grad school and what it entails by Visiting Assistant Professor of Psychology Dr. Megan Mey. This sort of support is something LUPA hopes to provide in upcoming years as it continues to recruit and grow. Matthews described his goal of the club being able to specialize in different areas and provide specific resources necessary for them alongside the broader field.
“It’s important to give the psychology students here at Lawrence an extracurricular where we can all come together and get work done together,” said Matthews. “We have fun while we’re doing it, but we also expand each other’s minds in terms of psychology, the faculty are more involved with the students, and we can create more opportunities on campus for learning, especially in psychology.”
“What a lot of people find at Lawrence is that as you get older, in your second year or third year and after you’ve declared a major, you find common people in your classes,” said Reservation Specialist Sofie Fune. “That’s kind of how it is with LUPA in that a lot of the people that are on the board and who we interact with are people we’ve had in classes. So, it’s been a really good experience, and we’re all close and good friends, and it’s a lot of fun.”
According to club representative Eliana Stern, the club provides both networking opportunities and resources for those interested in psychology careers as well as a platform for more casual social experiences. There’s an undeniable sense of community that grows alongside LUPA, and the board members collectively voice the desire to see it continue to expand.
“It helps evolve a community,” said public relations and social media manager Lexi Schofield. “Just show up and come get involved, it’s really low-key, and it’s great for meeting other psych students, meeting new people, and kind of figuring out which areas of psych you’re interested in.”