Ever wonder about the stories behind the vast amount of students that walk around UMass Amherst each day? The saying “you can make a big school feel smaller but you can’t make a small school feel bigger” absolutely applies here at UMass, and one group of students is fully taking advantage of this principle. Creatures of Zoomass, a new student-run social media group on campus, is running around with cameras ready to show you an unscripted UMass. You might have come across one of their four core members asking for a picture, or you might have seen the profiles of some students posted on their Facebook or Instagram pages. The people behind this project-in-the-making are more than just your regular students; they are the ones that want to share the beauty they see in UMass with all of its creatures.
The program began with an idea to create a foundation on social media where students could see the hidden gems of the University. The creators, Kylee Denesha, Danielle Aihini, Emili Johnson, and Andy Christian all found a common interest in Humans of New York, a social media phenomenon that exposes the emotional and/or hilarious backstories of everyday New Yorkers, and the group believed they could form a student-based group similar to that here on campus. They took off with the idea immediately, and that very week started their Facebook page, which already has over 500 likes.
Mainly highlighting the students and staff, the Creatures of Zoomass team runs around campus finding people to photograph and interview. Although some photos are completely random, the main goal is to show students things on campus that they might not see everyday, or shine a light on students and staff they might never get to cross paths with. They want to show you people, places, and things that you might have never thought about before in your time here thus far. The description listed on their Facebook page, “We are the people that you pass in the halls without a word; we are the fans in the stands but also the players on the court. We are artists, writers, bloggers, poets, photographers and most of all, students. We care about this campus and want to see great things happen”, ultimately shows how passionate they are in exposing the everyday UMass student.
One of the creators, Kylee Denesha, gave me an idea of the original Creatures of Zoomass team, stressing that they are all open about future ideas and all focused on making the social media project a success on campus: “We are so passionate about this project, so we definitely want to make it big. We care about UMass so we want to share its coolness.” She emphasized that without the drive of Danielle Aihini to run the project’s Instagram and Emili Johnson to interview students, or the amazing photography skills of Andy Christian, the project just wouldn’t be the same.
The mantra of Creatures of Zoomass, to serve as a “public outlet for creativity and to give a voice to students who wouldn’t have one otherwise”, is an inviting one, so feel free to stop and say hi to any of the members if you see them, or inquire about how you can join their efforts to publicize UMass students in a unique and creative way. Or maybe, just maybe, they’ll find you first. Welcome to the Zoo!
Photo Credit: All pictures are from the Creatures of Zoomass Facebook page.