What is the Student Union Board?

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Kennedy DeRaedt/Iowa State Daily

Ella Mai performs at the Student Union Board’s Spring Outdoor Concert on April 25. Mai was nominated for two Grammy awards in 2019 for her single “Boo’d Up.” Her debut album went platinum on March 16. The concert took place in parking lot 29 of the Molecular Biology Building.

Tanner Owens

The Student Union Board (SUB) is a student organization that focuses on planning and promoting events, such as concerts and comedy shows.

The group is composed of 13 executive members and more than 100 general members. The group is responsible for large events on campus such as the SUB Spring Concert and ISU AfterDark.

The organization is open to students from any major and acts as a tremendous resumé-builder for students majoring in event management and marketing. Other events that SUB is responsible for include the Cyclone Cinema in Carver Hall, Open Mic Nights and concerts at the Maintenance Shop (M-shop) and multicultural events.

The group meets at 5 p.m. every other Wednesday in the M-Shop unless the location is in use for an event. In the case of a scheduling conflict, an alternative site for the meeting would be posted on www.sub.iastate.edu.

SUB is open to all students. To join, the only thing students have to do is either fill out a “Join SUB” form on the SUB website or attend one of the SUB meetings.

The current president of SUB, Matt Schroeder, started in SUB as a general member with no clear goal of what he wanted to do within the group.

“I went to one of their shows, and then eventually I began volunteering at those shows, and then I just started getting into it,” Schroeder said.

Responsibilities of SUB’s general members include helping bands load gear, emceeing open mic nights, selling merchandise and more. The group also prides itself in connecting students with similar goals and interests to form lifelong friendships. The organization hosts a retreat for officers to participate in team-building exercises and other activities.

Last year was my first year being a director, and I went to the retreat, and that whole experience was just a lot of fun,” Schroeder said. “We played a lot of team-building games and [got] to know each other pretty well.

SUB’s last major event came in the form of the Spring Outdoor Concert. After a lackluster inaugural show in 2018 that featured a wash-out Fetty Wap and the low-tier KYLE and Cheat Codes performance, SUB completely redeemed the concert.

2019’s concert drew relevant talent with R&B/hip-hop artist Bazzi and R&B singer Ella Mae headlining. The concert had a significantly larger reaction with students and adults on social media, garnering more than 200 more likes on Facebook than last year’s announcement.

The organization has hosted comedians such as Marlon Wayans and Pete Davidson, the latter even brought his famous then-girlfriend, Ariana Grande, to the Iowa State event. “Queer Eye” star Antoni Porowski also visited the Memorial Union earlier this year.