A(pril) Palooza, a fundraiser carnival that is the product of an inter-group collaboration, will take place between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. today on the Residential Quad.
"A(pril) Palooza is basically a large charity carnival," sophomore Rachel Friedman, co-chair of the Tufts Hillel Social Committee, said.
The carnival features the involvement of groups such as such as Tufts Hillel, the Roosevelt Institute, Alpha Omicron Pi, Tufts Christian Fellowship and CAFÉ.
Friedman explained that each organization will be sponsoring some sort of activity for people to take part in. Hillel, for example, will have a dunk tank where students can participate with a certain amount of tickets.
"We're even dunking [Tufts Community Union] President Brandon Rattiner," Friedman said.
Each organization involved is donating the funds collected at the carnival to a particular charity of its choice, according to Friedman. Hillel will be donating to a charity focusing on juvenile diabetes, while others are donating to New Orleans rebuilding and Haiti relief, among others.
Friedman noted that there is a great deal of diversity in the different charities being donated to.
Events Coordinator for the Tufts Branch of the Roosevelt Institute, sophomore Emily Cox, indicated that the institute is sponsoring a tie-dye station where students can tie-dye bandanas. Proceeds will go to Partners in Health, a Boston-based non-profit health care organization that has recently focused much of its efforts on Haiti relief.
"It seems to be the most relevant charity these days," Cox said.
The Arab Student Association is organizing a Jumbo ring toss, a traditional balloon dart game and a table selling Middle Eastern food, according to the group's secretary, sophomore Noora Barakat. The funds raised will go to Karama, a Palestinian charity serving women and children.
Friedman explained that Hillel — the main coordinating organization — wanted to host a large-scale, campus-wide event to conclude the semester.
"We wanted to close the year with a celebration and start the summer with a bang," Friedman said. "We've been planning this for two months, and we wanted to get as many organizations as possible involved."
Cox explained that the Roosevelt Institute — a national student-run think tank aimed at encouraging students to engage in policy research and writing — chose to get involved to gain publicity for the Tufts chapter that just launched in February.
"We wanted to be involved since we are a new organization," Cox said. "We are always looking for opportunities to get involved because we thought it would be a really great way to reach current students and new students. We're hoping for a strong freshman involvement next year."
The event also coincides with April Open House, which Friedman said was a deliberate choice to both increase the volume of potential attendees and reach out to the accepted class.
"We're hoping for a lot of foot traffic; it is, after all, April Open House," Friedman said. "We want to show what Tufts does through our really cool big event. We're hoping to do a good thing for charity while having a lot of fun. It's going to be epic; everyone is really excited."
Junior Charles Skold, one of the Tufts Christian Fellowship (TCF) leaders, echoed these sentiments, noting that it was an enjoyable way to bring together student organizations and interact with prospective students.
"The reason we want to participate is it is fun," Skold said "We get to interact not only with Hillel and other student groups on campus but with pre-frosh who will be in area." TCF is raising funds for rebuilding efforts in post-Katrina New Orleans.
Barakat welcomed the opportunity to work with different student organizations.
"We try to collaborate as much as we can with other student groups, and we thought it was a great opportunity, because all the money that gets raised goes to a charity of our choice," she said. "And it sounds really fun."
Cox noted that the carnival will give prospective students the chance to see student organizations in a different light.
"I think that it will be a unique way to see the groups on campus because it's not your normal activity fair," Cox said. "A(pril) Palooza will be an interesting new idea."
Amelie Hecht and Ellen Kan contributed reporting to this article.
