Students from Georgia Southern University’s (GSU) event management class completed their big project on Saturday. The students helped execute Savannah Christian Preparatory School’s largest event, the Gala.

The students spent months helping plan Savannah Christian Preparatory School’s (SCPS) annual gala.

Over the spring semester, the 7 GSU students completed various tasks such as organizing a live auction, making program books and writing articles in order to make the event possible. The students commuted to Savannah throughout the week to meet with the gala from SCPS.

“The guests paid $100 each, so I knew I had to make sure everything I did was perfect,” said Lauren Jackson, member of the GSU gala team. “It took up a lot of my time but it really paid off.”

The constant commute between Statesboro and Savannah can be tough on a college student. “It was hard because I am broke and I had to fill up my gas tank much more than I normally do,” said Candice Hall, member of the GSU gala team.

The GSU gala team and the SCPS gala team take a break before the event began.

While planning the event, the Gala team had a full schedule of classes that they had to keep up with.

“I had no idea how much actually goes into planning an event,” said Kelli Martin, member of the GSU Gala team. “You would be surprised at all of the things that need to be taken into consideration, like the temperature of the room and the angle of the television.”

Students helped assemble the floral arrangements and set the tables for the guests. The color scheme was black and white and the decorations followed the theme.

The girls used the skills they learned in their public relations classes at GSU to help them do assignments for the gala. “I used my writing skills to do the gala guide and the program book,” said Hall. “I’m glad I got to take all my PR writing classes before I worked on the gala stuff.”

Guests made a minimum donation of $20 and received a pot and a flower. The paper flower opened and displayed the prize that the guest won.

The Gala was held to raise money for new technology that will benefit the students of SPCS. The event took place at the Hyatt Regency hotel in Savannah.

The theme for the evening was “A night on the river.” “I think the theme went perfectly because we were just steps from the Savannah River,” said SCPS intern Emily Rich.

Professor Muller’s event management class split into four groups and each group was assigned to and responsible for one event. The SCPS Gala group had the biggest commitment, as the members commuted several days a week and their event accommodated the largest amount of people.

The students in the event management course learned a lot from the events they helped plan and execute. “I did the communication arts fundraiser and I learned so much,” said student Sarah Ewer. “I’m so happy I got to take this class because I’m going to be an event planner when I graduate.”

The event management course is only offered in the spring through the communication arts department. Dr. Muller is the only professor that teaches this course. Students can register on WINGS.

Sam Dershowitz