At 11:15 on Monday, September 17, hoards of people rushed into room 318 for the year’s first meeting of Ecology Club. Every table was full of interested students. The overflow crowd sat on top of counters or stood.

While the students ate lunch, the club’s leader, Courtney Kiley, gave an introduction to the club, accompanied by a short slideshow. She explained some of the club’s past projects and trips, as well as talking about plans for this upcoming year such as canoeing, hiking, and visiting the U of M Biological Station. Despite all of the interest in the club, the enormous turnout left Kiley feeling overwhelmed.

“We’ve never had such a huge turnout for Ecology Club and it’s really encouraging that so many people love nature,” Kiley said. “We’re not going to get much done the first couple weeks because I don’t know what to do with 50 people.”

Despite seeing the full sign-up sheets after Club Fair, Kiley didn’t expect the club to gain so many new members; after the meeting, she felt nervous about having an efficient club that was able to get things done. However, she remains optimistic about making it work.

“I think the number of people who keep showing up will decrease,” Kiley said. “You will be a true Ecology Club member if you come every week, you go to our activities and you sign up for composting.”