The AU Social Media Club held its third annual Social Learning Summit on April 12 and 13, bringing students, teachers and professionals together to learn about new applications and trends in the world of social media.
The conference was attended by approximately 300 participants out of the 468 that registered, according to AU Social Media Club Vice President Melanie Loff-Bird, a sophomore in the School of Communication. This year’s turnout was an improvement over last year’s 250 participants, she said.
The conference, which was held in the School of International Service building, featured panels on the usage of online platforms, such as Twitter, and social media’s role in fields ranging from advertising to journalism to sports.
Each panel had a specific Twitter hashtag associated with it, allowing participants to live tweet their thoughts and comments online.
“I was able to be in one panel, but also see what was going on in another panel, so I think that’s ... important,” said Joey Polaski, a senior in SOC who attended talks on entertainment and online communities.
For others, the conference helped put new technology into a greater context.
“I think social media has come to structure all of our interactions as a generation. ... I think it’s a way to structure all of the conversations we have now,” Student Government Comptroller Joe Ste.Marie said, a sophomore in the School of Public Affairs.
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