Put on your poker face. The Undergraduate Student Government is hosting Vegas on Campus, a benefit for the charity Jumpstart, tomorrow night from 8 to 11 p.m. in the North and South lounges of the Ohio Union.
The event will consist of over 20 tables, which will include black jack, roulette, craps and Texas hold'em sit-and-go tournaments. At the end of the night, prizes, including a flat panel LCD television and other items from Best Buy, will be auctioned off to the highest bidder of play money.
While no purchase is necessary to participate in Vegas on Campus, USG is asking for donations between the amounts of $5 to $ 20 to be considered for the auction. Students will receive an increasing amount of chips they may use to bid for their donation.
"USG interns and members of the project committee will be dealers," said Sarah Heintz, co-director of USG's project committee.
Heintz added members of USG will be running a mock bar that will serve non-alcoholic drinks.
Mick Hall, a cabinet committee member of USG, said the event has been in planning since shortly after the beginning of winter quarter.
"Jumpstart approached us a while back asking if we could help them plan a fundraising event. When we came up with the idea for Vegas on Campus and wanted the proceeds to go to a charity, we thought of them," Hall said.
Jumpstart, an educational charity, was founded 10 years ago at Yale University on the premise that a child's performance in preschool directly correlates to his or her academic success further down the road. In order to combat inequalities in skills that grow over time, Jumpstart recruits thousands of college students to provide one-on-one attention to struggling preschoolers.
This year marks Jumpstart's second year at Ohio State. The program has 45 Corps members and five team leaders who serve 45 preschoolers in the surrounding area.
Andrea Savage, a junior in early childhood education, is the volunteer coordinator of Jumpstart. She said through this language-based program, Corps members bring children a variety of materials they can explore and learn about the world around them. During their semi-weekly meetings, students interact with the preschoolers through reading, circle time, small group activities and "choice time," where the children are able to express their desires for certain activities.
"The kids can see that other people in the community care about them," Savage said. "They don't necessarily see us as adults, but as older people who are willing to play at their level. A lot of the kids don't have father figures, so the male students help to fill that role."
"I want to encourage students to come out Wednesday night. It'll be a good time and student have the opportunity to win great prizes for a great cause," Heintz said.
Students interested in becoming involved in the Jumpstart program can find more information at www.Jstart.org.
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