Students Test Their Knowledge of Comic Books and TV Shows at Trivia Night

Sodexo Dining Services is offering students more than just food this semester – it is offering them chances to test their knowledge on beloved television shows, movies and comic books during their virtual trivia nights. 

These trivia nights, which each have a particular theme, are conducted through Microsoft Teams. Students have the opportunity to play alone or form teams up to five people. The entire process is done online, from signing up to signing off. 

The first two themes were “The Office” and movies from Disney’s Pixar Animation Studios with two more themed nights centered around the Marvel and DC Comics universes, and the last event will focus on Christmas.

Students can participate by signing up via a form provided, which Sodexo then uses to send invitations when the event is set to begin. However, only team captains are required to keep their web cameras on during the trivia questions. Microphones are required to be off, but students are encouraged to use the chat function on Teams to answer questions. 

The questions are presented on a PowerPoint slide displayed in the meeting. The questions have ranged from multiple choice to open-ended questions and everything in between. Players submit their answers on a Google form and at the end of the night, their correct answers are tallied. 

Tobi Laukaitis, marketing and event coordinator for Sodexo, explained how the winners are decided: whoever has the most points, or correct answers, wins. The prizes are chosen based on the night’s theme. 

“For ‘The Office’ [themed trivia night] the team won ‘World’s Best Boss’ mugs,” she said, referencing a mug the main character often uses in the show. Prizes have also included Disney figurines and a pizza party held at Woodfire, Laukaitis said. 

Despite their aim to have one fun event for students per month, Laukaitis said, they were unable to do that this semester due to the Coronavirus and social distancing standards. That was what inspired them to move to virtual events, and the idea of doing a completely online trivia night was born. 

Ryan Wheeler, a field marketing specialist at Sodexo, came up with the idea during brainstorming meetings before the beginning of the school year. He said that over the summer, his friends invited him to participate in a virtual trivia night that a temporarily-closed restaurant was hosting. It helped him to feel connected during a time of physical isolation.

“Our team of five had so much fun participating over Skype with one another, deliberating and good-hearted, heated debating on what the correct answers were,” he said. “It was a way to stay connected with our friends in a safe and secure way.”

That is the same feeling that Sodexo wanted students to experience, even if they couldn’t have big events in person. 

“In a year where a lot of in-person events are canceled, virtual trivia nights give students the opportunity to connect, forget about stress for a couple hours, and scratch your head thinking about what was the name of Toby’s daughter in ‘The Office,’” Wheeler said.

Laukaitis echoed his sentiments.

“It’s really a great way to get to burn off steam, and to get to know us as dining services,” Laukaitis said. “We really care about our students, and we want them to have the best dining experience they possibly can have over four years.” 

For students who have played — and won — their feelings about the event mirror those of the people hosting them. Taryn Spencer, who was part of the team that won the Disney trivia, said that she enjoyed the event because it allowed her to get together with friends in a safe yet fun manner. 

“My favorite part was being able to still get together with friends to participate in events like this,” she said. “We also liked winning!