"Sexploration at IU" speed dating event draws students to IMU

Patrick Nagel, a member of the “Sexploration at IU” team, set giant corn centerpieces and countless information sheets on several long tables in the Indiana Memorial Union’s State Room East.

The table-toppers were meant to be an ironic, “corny” nod to the theme of the night, Nagel said, and a conversation starter for Monday evening’s main event: speed dating.

Nagel, a graduate student at IU studying counseling, forms half of the core “Sexploration at IU” team.

The other half is Erin Adams, a graduate student majoring in public health.

Together, the team has coordinated a year’s worth of events that aim to promote a sex-positive attitude on campus, Adams said, and speed dating is kicking off the semester.

Fifteen IU students filed into the room at 7 p.m., with varying expectations for the experience.

“I thought it was interesting and I wanted to try it,” said one freshman, adding that it wouldn’t be a bad thing if something romantic resulted.

Danielle Bolling, an IU sophomore, said she wasn’t looking for romance, but went to speed dating because it was something she had always been curious about and because she was looking to meet new friends on campus.

The speed-dating event was “orientation-inclusive,” Nagel said, emphasizing that people of any gender or sexual orientation were welcome to attend, and everyone would be talking with each other.

When everyone was seated, Nagel showed a short film — a dating documentary from the 1950s — as an icebreaker and a reminder that the night was meant to be light-hearted.

The group talked briefly about the similarities and differences between dating then and now, and Nagel underlined the fact that dates were fundamentally about shared communication and reciprocity.

A bell rang, and the first three minutes of dating ensued.

Each participant received a sheet of paper for listing names, and they could circle either “Friendship” or “Romance” next to the person’s name.

After the event, Adams and Nagel went through the lists and paired up people with similar interests. Nagel said they will then email both students to form an initial connection.

The idea of speed dating is a nice change when the emphasis at IU is on the “hook-up” culture, Adams said, noting that the dating scene has changed a lot since the time the last generation was in college.

Speed dating gives students the opportunity to just talk to a stranger for three minutes, practice conversational skills and maybe meet a potential friend or love interest, Adams said.

“It’s not necessarily all romantic,” Adams said. “It’s about building
relationships.”

Follow reporter Anicka Slachta on Twitter @ajslachta.