ALEX TETEN
tetensa@lopers.unk.edu

Thursday night saw the return of the Laser Battles. Despite worries of low turnout, students showed came to participate and take a break from schoolwork. 

Hard rock and laser tag filled the Ponderosa room of the Student Union at 7 p.m. Thursday. Within the darkly lit room was the Laser Battle held by the Loper Programming and Activities Council. Hosted by TropicalExtremes.com, the returning laser battles were scheduled to help students get out and play.

“Our main goal is to get UNK students involved with LPAC and the activities here,” said Kyra Miles, the Event Programming Chair for LPAC. “We usually host a variety of events for everybody to participate.”

This is not the first time Laser Battle has been arranged, but it has been the first time it has been scheduled in a while. LPAC, a student-run organization, chose to bring back Laser Battle as a way to boost student participation in non-academic extracurricular events. LPAC also plans events like Homecoming, the Spring Concert, the Fun 5K, and others. 

Another student, Ashley Laurie, a senior, shared why she thought the Laser Battle event was important for students.

“I think it gives students a break from studying and they can see what kind of activities are happening on campus,” said Laurie.

One of the main concerns LPAC had was the lower turnout of students. The event was described by members as being low on advertisement, so the group was worried the total number of attendees would be considerably lower than usual. Students received an email with a promotion of the event and posters were put around the Student Union beforehand as promotion. 

Another attendee, Zay Jackson, a junior at UNK, said more people should show up to the events.

“It’s a lot of fun. More people need to come out. It takes a lot of stress off of students,” Jackson said. “It’s cool. It’s a good event to come out here and support your school and students.”

The event was held for over three hours. During that time, many students came by to play the games. Some groups even stayed to play the game multiple times. Members of LPAC would like to host Laser Battles again next year, but some of the members suggested they increase advertising for the event to gather even more people to the attraction.

Only time will tell if LPAC will host Laser Battles again, but from those who did attend, the event was well worth it. If Laser Battle is hosted next year too, stop by and give it a shot to support student-run groups like LPAC and thank them for putting on fun and unique events around campus.