MARGARITA AND HER POPS PALS

POPS PALS was founded by Margarita Consing (Pops Class of 2017). In her own words, here is how it came to be:

“When I started Pops as a freshman, I felt overwhelmed by the size of the orchestra. It is hard to get to know everyone, especially those who play in different sections. I wanted to start a Pops buddy system to help make our 100 member group feel a little smaller. It was coined 'Pops Pals' by some of my other board members, and we started in Fall 2016. By placing members into small groups, we wanted to hopefully improve retention and help people make friends faster; we were noticing that some would leave the orchestra after their first semester possibly because they were not able to create those connections right away. I specifically wanted to bridge the gap between band and string players, which tends to be common in orchestras.  

I have met some of the brightest and most passionate people in Pops, so I started grouping people by their majors and career interests because younger members can learn from older members and maybe even study together. Pops draws students who not only share their love for playing fun music but also have many other similar interests, so I created a Pops Pals Bucket List of different activities the Pops Pals could do around campus together.  

Groups would post pictures on social media of when they would hang out and receive points for their team. When everyone would see groups hanging out, I figured it would be a good incentive to get other groups to become more active and create more friendships. I really think Pops Pals has helped to increase inter-section bonds and made the Pops family even closer. I am proud to see it continuing and cannot wait to see how friendships will flourish in the years to come.”