In less than a week, students, faculty, and staff may be answering some very tough questions. But this time the questions won’t be on a test or in a class – they will be part of NPR’s trivia game show, “Ask Me Another.”
On November 4, NPR will tape “Ask Me Another” in Marshall Auditorium. Michael Elias, Director of Student Activities, said that hosting the event at Haverford is an exciting opportunity, especially because Haverford will be the first college featured on the show.
“I’m really just hoping that it gives students a good hour-and-a-half opportunity to sort of unwind, enjoy a big event, and generally witness something that has not happened here before and might not happen again in this rendition,” Elias said.
While many students, faculty, and staff may choose to watch from the audience, others said that they were hoping to be contestants on the show. In fact, Elias said, over the past few weeks, about 25 students, faculty, and staff applied to be contestants by filling out an online questionnaire. From there, he said, NPR narrowed it down to the final 4 or 5 people who will take the stage next Thursday.
Jai Nimgaonkar ‘19, who will be one the contestants, said that he is excited to be on the show because it appeals to the trivia-loving side of himself.
“I really enjoyed the word games in the application, and I thought I have nothing to lose,” he said.
The event was organized by the Speakers Committee, which hosts a prominent speaker each semester. But this year, Elias said, they decided to try something new. Rather than putting the $15,000-per-semester budget towards a single speaker, he said, the Committee opted to host a larger – and more expensive – event this fall. He said that some students had expressed interest in bringing the show to campus and that it was an appealing choice for this new type of event. So, he said, he reached out to the show last spring and was excited to make the match.
“The idea I think really stemmed from a desire to do something new and try to find some new ways to engage the community that fell outside of what maybe was more an academic-type lecture,” Elias said.
The event will take place on Friday, November 4 at 7:30 p.m. in Marshall Auditorium. Doors open at 6:45 for priority seating and the Haverford community and at 7:00 for the public.
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