Ivanna Tjitra stood in line, eyeing a giant halloween Squishmallow she hoped to declare hers. When her time came to go fishing for a rubber duck, she scooped up two. Her gut was telling her to pick the mermaid duck, meaning she won a small plushie. She chose a smiling pumpkin plushie, but since it could also look like an orange, Tjitra and her friend decided on the name “ambiguous orange object." 

She added “ambiguous orange object” to her collection of Chapman memorabilia that she keeps in a corner of her room. Since she lives at home and commutes to campus, she enjoys the events that UPB puts on because it makes her feel more part of the Chapman Community. 

“I get to bring a little bit of Chapman home which is really nice," said Tjitra, a sophomore graphic design major. "I'm not in a dorm. I don't live on campus. I'm not always surrounded by Chapman students. I'm with my family. I'm with my high school friends on the weekends. So, having a little bit of Chapman spirit with me as a commuter is really nice.”

The University Program Board (UPB) hosted an Adopt-a-Duck event Oct. 5, when students were able to scoop up a rubber duck with a net and then they would win a prize — depending on what marking was on the bottom of the duck. 

“It’s a cute concept; not only are you fishing for a prize, you get to keep the duck,” Tjitra said.

UPB also took a Halloween spin on the classic carnival game by dressing the ducks in costumes to get students in the autumn spirit, freshman studio arts major Amanda Stein-Sigal said.

There were big and small prizes depending on what color the marking was on the bottom of the duck. Some of the prizes were even Halloween-themed, including pumpkins and halloween character Squishmallows, which added to the festivity. 

“The bottom (prize) was the stickers and then it goes up to a keychain, to a small prize (stuffed animal) and then to a Squishmallow," Tjitra said. "I'm pretty sure everyone wanted a Squishmallow because they were adorable."

The idea for this event stemmed from another member of UPB who collects rubber ducks,  giving junior business administration major Rachel Lin, the campus entertainment director for UPB, a duck-related idea.

“I really wanted to do something related to rubber ducks," Lin said. "We originally wanted to do a ducky derby or a duck race. But then we needed a moat and a flow of water. So, I kind of just resorted to this other duck event. We just wanted to give students an opportunity to play a little fun game where they get to win prizes."

Tjirta told The Panther that the events UPB hosts bring a little joy to her life during those tough work-heavy weeks. 

“It was a difficult, rough week," Tjitra said. "Midterms are a lot of stress for a lot of students. This was something that lifted a lot of our spirits. I think we were worried about our tests and our projects and just being able to have this little plushie that's smiling made me so happy. I brought it to my next class that day, and I was playing catch with it with my friends and then my professor joined and we were just catching this thing that I had gotten for free." 

Lin said she hopes that UPB events like Adopt-a-Duck bring people together on campus and allow the Chapman community to bond with one another, just as Tjirta did. 

“It was a huge opportunity for people to get to meet people from different grade levels, clubs and organizations," Lin said. "It was just a great way for people to unite and meet the Chapman community as a whole."

Moving forward with fall-themed events, Lin said that UPB will host a pumpkin patch event on Oct. 13 with plenty of snacks like corn dogs, apple cider and pumpkin pie kettle corn. 

Stein-Sigal said she’s excited to go to the pumpkin patch because she wants to keep the fall festivities rolling after the Adopt-a-Duck event kicked it off. 

“I’m going to try and go with some people after my class to the pumpkin patch because it's going to have some good fall vibes, which I'm very into,” Stein-Sigal said. 

Editor’s note: A previous version of this story misspelled Ivanna Tjitra’s last name. We regret the error