UTEP Student Engagement and Leadership Center (SELC) hosted Movies on the Lawn, a free movie night at Centennial Plaza for students and the El Paso community Friday.
The event started at 8:30 p.m. Attendees watched “Wonder Woman 1984” while SELC offered free drinks, snacks and UTEP T-shirts.
“Throughout the summer, we host roughly four to five movies for the UTEP community as well as the El Paso community to just have a space to relax, watch a movie, in an open kind of environment here on Centennial Plaza,” Anthony Vincent, coordinator of fraternity and sorority life said.
The event’s previous feature was well received by the student body and community, with the animated film “Trolls” drawing approximately 400 people.
“We know-how taxing and how difficult it can be to be a student, so we offer this space just to come out with your friends, come out with your family as well and just enjoy a movie of some sort,” Vincent said.
Regular attendees recommend bringing blankets, chairs and food. This makes the movie-going experience more comfortable and helps out afterward when it’s time to clean.
“ We take a lot of pride in ensuring that our UTEP campus is in the best condition as possible, so we encourage everyone to clean up in their spaces and respect the space that we have,” Vincent said.
Students and community members brought family and friends to join in on the fun at Centennial Plaza.
“It’s a very fun experience. We get to be with family, we get to be with the children in a safe environment, so it’s really nice,” graduate student Stephanie Flores said.
Graduate occupational therapy student Katie Dominguez recommends others come to campus events.
“ We always invite new friends every time and they enjoy it, so it’s just nice to kind of build that rapport with other people but also for campus support,” Dominquez said.
Movies on the Lawn may be a fun event, but it’s also a way for people to ease their way back into pre-covid life.
“Coming out here for me was a getaway. It’s kind of like slowly reintroducing myself back into society,” graduate student Kashada Jones said. “ You get to come out; you get to see people and enjoy free popcorn and a movie.”
The next film for the summer series will be “Teen Beach Movie” July 6 with the Jack Black favorite “School of Rock” wrapping up the series July 23.
For more information about upcoming events, follow UTEP SELC on Instagram @utepselc.
Julia Lucero may be reached at [email protected].
