UPDATE: Because of the forecast of inclement weather for April 22, the STATIC on Philly events, including distribution of STATIC Downtown Dollars, will take place at the Indiana Theatre at 637 Philadelphia St., and the Indiana Borough cleanup event has been moved to Sunday, April 23, at 1:00 p.m. Volunteers should meet at the Indiana Borough Building on North Eighth Street.
Into the Streets service projects will continue as scheduled.
Saturday, April 22, in Indiana will bring Indiana University of Pennsylvania and the Indiana community together for a day of service, a celebration of the arts, live music (including by several local musicians), and downtown shopping by IUP students.
The day begins with IUP’s annual Into the Streets event, which will bring more than 150 student volunteers into the community to provide service to 12 different service agencies and organizations. In addition to this bi-annual IUP service event, another 200 students, many from IUP’s fraternities and sororities, working with Indiana Borough and Downtown Indiana, will be doing cleanup throughout Indiana Borough with community volunteers.
From noon to 5:00 p.m., Downtown Indiana will have its annual Indiana Arts Walk, which showcases the talents of local painters, potters, sculptors, photographers, musicians, dancers, and furniture makers. Businesses throughout town will display a wide variety of art from noon to 5:00 p.m., and some will have artists onsite creating new works.
Downtown Indiana also will provide a map for a “mural walk,” to showcase the more than 20 outdoor building murals throughout the downtown area. In addition, IUP professor of geography and regional planning Kevin Patrick will speak about Indiana’s historic architecture and lead walking tours in the community and around the central business district.
Also starting at noon, IUP’s STATIC (Student Activity Committee) will have the first “STATIC on Philly” at the Indiana Theater in downtown Indiana.
In addition to live music from noon to 3:45 p.m., every student who has a valid I-Card that attends the event will receive $15 STATIC Downtown Dollars, to spend at participating businesses downtown throughout the day. (STATIC Downtown Dollars cannot be used for alcohol purchases.) STATIC Downtown Dollars will be distributed at the Indiana Theater starting at noon.
“Every time that we organize events in the downtown area, they ‘sell out’ almost immediately,” said Ryan Sharp, student activities coordinator for the IUP Student Cooperative Association, which includes STATIC. “Students really like Indiana and what it has to offer to them,” he said.
“This year, we decided to shift our traditional end-of-year cookout to a downtown Indiana event. We wanted to provide the opportunity for students to eat and shop downtown through the STATIC Downtown Dollars, as a way to bring more students downtown and to thank our business community for its hospitality to our students,” Sharp said.
STATIC is a student-driven organization, with a student executive board and volunteers; students work with the director to plan, execute, and promote events.
STATIC worked closely with Downtown Indiana on this project.
“As the executive director of Downtown Indiana Inc., I am looking forward to working with IUP and the STATIC organization on this event. We value all opportunities to work with IUP bringing the university to downtown Indiana,” Sam Kenly said. “It should be an incredible day in our community.”
Three of the musicians performing as part of STATIC on Philly are from Indiana, with the final performers from the Pittsburgh area. The schedule of performers is as follows:
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Noon–12:45 p.m.
Lily Carone of Indiana (pop/jazz stylings of Sara Bareilles, John Mayer, Fleetwood Mac)
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1:00–1:45 p.m.
Grant Minnick of Indiana (ukulele alternative rock, for fans of Cage the Elephant, Tame Impala, and Mac DeMarco)
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2:00–2:45 p.m.
Jarrod Barry of Indiana (pop/country/R&B)
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3:00 to 3:45 p.m.
Pittsburgh-based, internationally touring musicians Zack Keim (Nox Boys) and Jordan Clark (The Frights, PLOSIVS)
The Into the Streets events, held in both the fall and spring semesters, will see students working with the following organizations and agencies:
- Burrell Township Library
- Chevy Chase Food Forest
- Evergreen Conservancy
- First Unitarian Universalist Church
- Four Footed Friends
- Friends of Whites Woods
- Grace United Methodist Church
- Indiana Community Garden
- Indiana County Conservation District
- IRMC
- Salvation Army
- Trinity United Methodist Church
Romeo’s Pizzeria & Mediterranean Kitchen is donating pizza for students participating with Into the Streets.
The Indiana Borough cleanup event, which builds on the success of cleanup by students after Homecoming festivities, is a partnership between IUP, Downtown Indiana, and Indiana Borough.
In its third year, it has its roots in the Great American Cleanup, a national movement. As part of this effort, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation will supply trash bags and gloves, and Waste Management will supply dumpsters for the collected trash.
Students will continue the tradition of working directly with community volunteers—in past years, almost 200 community members have joined the students for the project every year—and the volunteers can choose where they want the cleanup to take place. In addition, Indiana Borough has several “concentration areas” in Indiana Borough where cleanup efforts could be done. Volunteers are welcome and can meet the group at 9:00 a.m. at North Seventh and Philadelphia streets.