Student Government Association House of Representatives takes Salsa dance lessons
The Student Government Association is composed of representatives of all kinds of Chips — and last night they were submerged in Salsa.
The SGA House of Representatives took Salsa lessons Monday night in Finch Fieldhouse. House Leader Taylor Hammerl spearheaded the gathering, which was the first house retreat of the semester.
“I’m (a resident assistant) in Sweeney, and I just did a Salsa dancing lesson for my residents and it went great,” the Lake Orion junior said. “We’re doing it to help everyone get to know each other.”
Hammerl said the event was successful because people came out of their shells and got to talk to each other.
Merrill residence hall director Lizandro Tremolada taught the class.
“LT does an amazing job,” Hammerl said. “He was the instructor when we did this in Sweeney too.”
Tremolada advised his audience of student leaders to let go of their inhibitions before beginning the lesson.
“Have fun and don’t be concerned with who’s watching you,” Tremolada said.
The group began the lesson without partners while Tremolada taught them the steps.
Pontiac senior Bianca Fernandez said the Salsa dance lesson came at just the right time.
“It’s Hispanic heritage month,” the Sola Scriptura representative said. “So I’m excited to show off my Latina knowledge.”
The members circled up with leads on the inside of the circle and follows on the outside.
Tremolada asked the leads to move one partner to the right after every new move he taught to encourage them to get to know one another.
“It gave everyone a chance to meet and learn a little bit about each other,” Hammerl said. “I was able to talk, laugh, and really get to know some of our house members.”
It was the first house retreat Petoskey senior and Beta Alpha Psi representative Cody Ermler ever attended.
Ermler said he didn’t know what to expect when he walked into Finch Fieldhouse. As it turned out, he said he enjoyed the salsa dancing quite a bit.
“I thought it was really fun, and it beats sitting around in a room for an hour,” Ermler said. “I didn’t really know that many people in the SGA, but I got to know a ton of people at this retreat.”
By the end of the night, all the members of the SGA House in attendance were moving and grooving to the Salsa beats.
“Surprisingly, it wasn’t weird or awkward and overall I think everyone had a great time,” Ermler said.
