Lewis & Clark’s Skate Collective was founded this year by Caroline Arnis ’22 and Freya Kargard ’22. It was created to be an inclusive space for skaters to come together. The goals of the club are stated in their Instagram bio as “creating a judgment-free space for skaters to connect, learn, share and skate” and welcoming “all abilities, identities, and wheels.”
According to Kargard, initially, the plan was to get a group of people together who like to skate. Both Kargard and Arnis emphasized wanting to create a more inclusive community.
“(I) wanted to find more women to skate and go to parks with (since) skateparks can be very intimidating,” Kargard said.
Club member Mac Cornish ’22 would not have started skating without encouragement from Arnis and Kargard.
“The culture around skating where I’m from was very male-dominated … and there was never really room for me to be a part of that,” Cornish said.
In line with their goals of inclusivity, the club aims to not have a hierarchy. The focus is more about fostering a community.
“(The club has) meet-ups for people to skate together on or off campus, or logistics meetings to discuss what folks want from the club or from our funding,” Kargard said.
Kargard and members have a lot of goals and ideas for the future. The club recently received funding and their first priority is to buy safety gear for the group. According to Kargard, other possible uses for funding could include having teaching clinics for beginners, hosting events with a local skate shop or releasing a zine.
If you are interested in learning more, you can find them on the basketball court outside of Hartzfeld Hall, bombing hills around campus or on Instagram at @skatecollectivelc.
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