Music, food and a large crowd filled Cal State Fullerton’s West Campus Lot Thursday night for Associated Students Inc.’s Banda Night event, celebrating Hispanic culture and bringing people together.
Andrea Nunez, a project coordinator for ASI’s student program and engagement department, said the idea for Banda Night came about last school year during the fall semester as a way to kick off Hispanic Heritage Month.
The event was previously held at the Becker Amphitheater, but ASI made the decision to move it to the larger West Campus Lot to accommodate more people.
“It got a lot of attendees there so we decided to move it to the big lot,” Nunez said. “Definitely it’s becoming a legacy event.”
Food and activities were a major part of this year’s event, with vendors offering a variety of choices for attendees including smash burgers, sandwiches, esquites and tortas.
Attendees looking to take pictures could go to photo stations, eternizing a night with friends. Between the food vendors, music, dancing and photos, Banda Night had something for everyone.
This year’s event similarly exceeded expectations, with the turnout growing beyond what organizers anticipated. ASI relied on its marketing and social media teams to promote the event via social media to help increase awareness.
“As of right now, we’re definitely trying to figure it out just because we do have a big, big turnout, more than we expected,” Nunez said regarding whether or not the event is expected to return. “No promises yet, but we’ll definitely figure out a way if we can bring this back or not.”
Sociology major Amairany Flores attended Banda Night with friends, making it part of a night out before returning to her schoolwork. Flores wanted to experience her first event at CSUF with her friends while also enjoying the music.
“I had fun, the event was nice,” Flores said. “I was able to hangout with my friends and buy food at the vendors, and we did the photo booth as well.”
With everything the event offered, Flores said she would attend another ASI event in the future.
Similarly, the event attracted people from outside the CSUF student population. Jessica Rodriguez, who is not a CSUF student, attended after an invitation from her cousin who attends the university.
“I think it’s worth it. It’s my first time coming, and there’s a lot of people here,” Rodriguez said. “I like the music, so it’s pretty worth it so far.”
Rodriguez said she spent her very first CSUF event listening to the music but was interested in visiting some of the vendors later in the evening.
“I probably would come again if they do it again,” Rodriguez said. “I really like listening to banda music because it reminds me of back home.”
As the event continued, ASI organizers, vendors and attendees remained part of a growing gathering on campus. What began as a small event at Becker Amphitheater a year ago returned in a larger space, with organizers continuing to evaluate how Banda Night could develop for Titans in the future.