SF State students who want to get involved in campus life by joining a club or organization this semester have more choices than ever when choosing a group.

“With new additions to the already existing groups, we now have well over 200 organizations registered on campus,” said Eugenia Lopez, student ambassador of the Office of Student Programs and Leadership Development.

New groups to SF State this semester include the Sketch Comedy Club, the Gator pep band and additions to the Greek community on campus. All of these new campus organizations have registered themselves with OSPLD, which requires all members of any group to have at least a 2.0 GPA and to be registered as a part-time or full-time student at SF State.

“Joining an organization is a good way to get involved and to make friends,” Lopez said. “These things are hard sometimes, especially since we’re largely a commuter campus.”

There are plenty of new groups with welcoming arms to new members. One of these new groups, the Snapping Gator Band, is actively seeking new musicians to help give SF State a healthy dose of school spirit.

There have been a handful of failed attempts at starting a SF State band but according to band director Lance Ohnmeiss, it’s been a while since the university has had one. “This is the first time [SF State] has had a successful athletic band since 1948,” he said.

The Snapping Gator Band meets once a week and practices on a regular basis. They play at basketball games and a variety of campus events, such as Welcome Back Day. “The band provides fun and excitement, campus unity, comradery and a chance to make some new friends,” Ohnmeiss said.

The 25-member band invites music lovers of all kinds to contact the band and arrange a tryout. “A lot of non-music majors don’t have a musical outlet to play,” Ohnmeiss said. “This is a chance for music majors and non-music majors alike to come together and play for the benefit of the whole campus.”

In addition to all of the new clubs on campus, the Greek community is also growing this semester at SF State. One of the new sororities that is starting their first full semester at SF State is Lambda Chi Mu, a local Jewish sorority that officially became a part of the Greek system in the middle of the spring 2008 semester.

“We are a sorority based on Jewish values such as family, open arms, and tzedek (justice),” said Dona Standel, president of Lambda Chi Mu. “With a focus on strength, empowerment, leadership, philanthropy and friendship, all of our sisters learn and grow together in a number of ways.”

For a complete list of new and old campus organizations, visit the OSPLD office in the Student Services Building room 105.

“We pretty much have something for everyone here,” Lopez said. “If you want to get involved there are a lot of organizations to help make that happen.”