Emily Foster
Contributor
CJ Morris
Contributor
GEEK Fest, featuring The Park Band in concert, will be on the square in downtown Troy on Friday, Sept. 8, from 7-10 p.m.
GEEK Fest will follow the third annual GEEKS Week, a yearly event put on by the Sorrell College of Business.
According to Hank Findley, the senior associate dean for academic affairs in the College of Business, the purpose of the GEEKS program is to make students “globally aware, engaged with the business community, ethical decision-makers, knowledgeable to compete, and successful.” The program is in the final stages of acquiring accreditation to increase the value of the business degrees.
“(GEEKS Week) is for business students or people looking to become business students,” said Cade Ashley, a junior economics major from Clanton and the public relations representative for the Sorrell College of Business Student Advisory Council.
The Park Band, a variety cover band, will be the main event at GEEK Fest. Tucker Park, lead vocalist and guitarist for The Park Band and native of Troy, expressed his hope for a large turnout of Troy students.
“It’s just a great event for everybody to come out to start the year off,” Park said. “Especially with it being the night before the first home football game, we’ll definitely have a great time for sure; Troy can have just as much fun as Auburn or Alabama can.”
The band is made up of four members: Park, Jim Lambert, Jonathan Young and James Guiler, all Troy natives and university alumni. They will be joined by Tanner Jackson for Friday’s performance.
Park said the band will play anything from “classic rock, top 40, country and everything in between.”
Findley said GEEK Fest invited The Park Band two years ago and the students really enjoyed it, which is why the organizers decided to invite the band again.
Cade Ashley said that GEEK Fest is a partnership between the university, the city of Troy and Troy Bank & Trust. Its goal is to promote the business school and the various clubs and associations within it.
Dianna Lee, the marketing manager from Troy Bank & Trust, said that Troy Bank & Trust feels that it is important to sponsor the festival because it employs many Troy graduates.
“The entire venue is an opportunity for students to see other parts of Troy and to show students that there is life outside of Troy University,” Lee said. “There’s a lot of Troy University students that may not know everything that Downtown Square has to offer.”
Some other events during GEEKS Week are the student browsing session for the 26th annual accountancy day, hosted by the Sorrell Business School of Accountancy, on Sept. 7 in the Bibb Graves atrium from 9:30-11:30 a.m., and “Donuts with the Dean” with Judson C. Edwards, the dean of Sorrell College of Business, on Sept. 8 from 9-10:30 a.m..
“Come chat, get a doughnut, coffee, and just learn more about the business program, the accreditation that we’re seeking,” Ashley said. “(Edwards) is a very valuable connection to have for internships, general networking, and just a good person to know.”
When asked how he felt about the upcoming events for GEEKS Week, Ashley said he is “geeked for it.”
Findley said that the Sorrell College is excited for the festival Friday because the event will be in a new venue, Downtown Troy, which will be lit up the night of GEEK Fest.
Free food and T-shirts will be available at GEEK Fest, which will be on the square in downtown Troy on Friday, Sept. 8, at 7 p.m.
