On Tuesday, October 6, Kean University’s favorite media team came out with their own introduction to the spooky season, welcoming October with a Byte-Tober event at Kean Union.
The Student Life Media Team, or Cougar’s Byte, reshapes itself with a new theme each academic year to highlight student life with a creative twist. This year’s theme is Cougar's Byte Channel, modeled after the nostalgic Disney Channel that was formative to many a Kean Cougar’s childhood.
The team hosted Byte-Tober, a Cougar’s Byte Channel Original, to commemorate the university’s entry into fall and Halloween season. From 2:15 to 3:30 p.m., students enjoyed pumpkin painting, fun activities, and sweet treats in the Miron Student Center Plaza.
The first ten students who checked in received free beanies with the SLMT logo. Other students received free SLMT pouches, and all enjoyed apple cider and cider-flavored donuts at the refreshments table.
Yinelas Hernandez, a sophomore majoring in Mathematical Sciences Education from Newark, NJ, joined the queue of students at the check in table early on in the event. She shared what her favorite part of the season was. “The decorations for Halloween—I like when people are going all out with the inflatables,” she said. “And also when the leaves change, it changes the environment, it makes it feel [like it’s] fall.”
To help in the transition between seasons, Byte-Tober hosted several fall-themed activities. In Pumpkin Painting, students were given a wide selection of paints to decorate farm-fresh pumpkins with. The Mummy Wrapping station challenged students to wrap a partner with toilet paper in limited time, with winners receiving a prize. Poke a Pumpkin gave students the opportunity to win a mini monster plushie by poking cups and claiming the prize within.
Farah Olaeejo, a sophomore studying Architecture from Newark, NJ, came with Hernandez to the event. She expressed how helpful it was for celebrations like these to occur during the fall. “During the fall, because it gets a little cold, some people are like, they're not trying to come out outside,” she said. “So I feel like these type of events bring people together still.”
Olaeejo finds fall to be the perfect time to change up her personal style—including choice of clothing, drinks, and even perfume. “I wear lighter scented stuff in the summer because it's really hot,” she explained. “But in the fall, because I'm more clothed up, I can wear stronger scents. And it's more like candles in a way, like cinnamon. I like that, for the fall.”
Fellow attendee Angel Collazo also found himself changing his routine. A senior from Woodbridge, NJ, Collazo loves seeing the change in energy shifts for the fall, and loves October for its most recognizable holiday. But that’s not the only notable change he looks forward to.
“Before I was very loose and like, whatever it may be,” he observed. “But now I really want to start with a schedule, [have] more rigidity, more structure in my life.”
Fall is a nostalgic season for Collazo, one filled with contemplation and gratitude. “[It] makes me feel appreciative about the people around me and of myself, given that once again, we're going into this new season, the wheel continues to turn, and people are still with me. And I'm still with myself.”
As the event wrapped up, students posed with their newly painted pumpkins. Afterward, the SLMT voted for the Byte-Tober Pumpkin Picks, in categories like Most Festive Pumpkin and Spookiest Pumpkin.
With a lingering scent of crispy leaves, cider in ice, and pumpkin spice, the SLMT brought the spirit of the spooky to Kean campus. Future programming will continue to spotlight the student experience and the Cougar’s Byte Channel theme.
