As the sun begins to set and the finish line appears for the spring semester, there are dozens of things for students to look forward to. The crisp summer breeze, the relief of no homework and the endless list of summer plans. But before they can step off of campus for that three-month stretch of freedom, there is still one more big school event to look forward to. That event is none other than Bear Fest.
The University Program Council has changed up the events featured this year at Bear Fest, and University of Northern Colorado students have found themselves with a lot to look forward to.
“I think it’ll be really fun,” said Grayden Pustilnik, lead music and technology coordinator for the UPC. “There’s always an event happening. They overlap a little bit.”
The UPC has teased the Bear Fest events via their Instagram page over the past few weeks, and Bear News has also provided some coverage on an April 6 newscast to keep students in the loop. So far the events announced have been: the Puppy Social, Makers Den, Bear County Fair, Bear-B-Q and Battle of the Bears.
Similar to last year, a lot of the upcoming events focus on keeping students engaged and highlight the creative aspects in our community. The Puppy Social, along with the returning favorite petting zoo, give students a chance to slow down and destress. And in a time like finals, this matters now more than ever.
Another big change that has come along is the partnership with Downtown Greeley. Bear Fest has previously been framed as an on-campus event. However, this year the UPC has partnered with Downtown Greeley to expand the event.
“They were able to provide us with a stage, and a bunch of speakers and stuff like that,” Pustilnik said. “So we’re saving a lot of money that we would have spent. That’s kind of where that partnership came from.”
The UPC and university as a whole has also partnered with Downtown in the past for events, and with Greeley attempting to revamp the city image, this partnership only seems like a natural evolution.
But besides the previously mentioned events, it's hard to talk about Bear Fest without mentioning the spring concert. For most students, this is the main selling point for the entire event. The UPC goes all out and features a guest musician to perform exclusively for the UNC students for the night portion of Bear Fest.
Almost just as exciting as the announcement itself is the anticipation among the students of trying to guess who is performing. Over the next few days, rumors will fill the campus of who students have to look forward to seeing. For Joshua Rudnik, student parliamentarian for the Student Government Association, this mystery is where the fun of Bear Fest is at.
“I keep hearing about this artist, I don't know who it is, but I think it's going to be someone good,” Rudnik said. “I wish it was Noah Kahan, but I have a feeling it's not going to be.”
*Update: The UPC announced Friday (4/10) that pop artist Thomas Day will be the headliner at this year's Bear Fest.
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