On a Wednesday night, a group of 40 or so students gathered in the 1776 room and were handed fluorescent yellow t-shirts. Most of them knew each other, waving and talking as they found a place at one of the tables piled with yellow backpacks and set before the large projection screen. Collegiate Links, a networking site for college organizations, is being launched at Castleton State College. All club presidents and as many other club officers as they can bring, are required to hear the plan.

These students are familiar. They are the movers and shakers of this institution. They are the ones who attend most of the events and they are the ones who organize most of the events. They put up fliers, send e-mails and wait in line in the SGA office to talk to the Clubs/Program Coordinator, Tammy Lattuca.

Lattuca spearheaded the effort to bring the site to Castleton and believes the site, “opens up the whole campus to what’s happening and provides an interactive place for students to check out events and clubs.”

The 50 plus recognized clubs and organizations will be able to more easily attract and gain members because of it, she said.

In the past, interested students would have to find out who the club president was and track them down. Now, with a click of a button a student can automatically send them an e-mail.

“It’s a great way to bring students together and open them up to new social activities some kids may not have been aware of,” said Cherie Pfeiffer, a senior and treasurer for the Arts Students League.

Among the many features of the site are personal message boards for each club.

“It’s an easy way for the whole team to know what’s going on,” said Meghan Daly, a sophomore and president of Women’s Rugby.

“We also were able to know if we got our funding a lot faster,” Daly continued, talking about the finance tracker.

In the past, clubs would have to wait as long as week after the Finance Board met to know if they were approved for funding. With Collegiate Link, clubs always know exactly how much money they have available to them from their own fund-raising or given to them by the SGA.

Talia Roy, a senior and president of the Spanish Club is enthusiastic.

“This is going to change everything. I think most of the clubs need more people to get involved and this site gives them the opportunity,” she said.

The new website is at http://castletonclubs.collegiatelink.net and is on the club page on the Castleton Home Page. Students must sign up on Collegiatelink.com to participate