Students’ Association brings an arcade to Algonquin College for winter 2026’s AC Day 1

Students made new friends and played classic arcade games on Jan. 12 and Jan. 13 during the AC Day 1 event, with even more events to come, according to the Students’ Association.

“The Students’ Association was running this arcade for two days,” says Ilana Goldfarb, Students’ Association events manager. “On Monday it was a full day from 9 a.m. until 7 p.m.”

Students and staff were free to spend some time in the Student Commons to have some fun.

“There was an open arcade with some of the old-school arcade games, some new ones, and a few others as well,” Goldfarb said.

The games included foosball, Guitar Hero, Marvel vs. Capcom, and StepManiaX.

Outside during the first day of the event, students could claim a free treat.

“For students who wanted them, there were free BeaverTails,” said Goldfarb. “They could sign up here at the front, give us their student number and their name, and we’d give them a ticket for the BeaverTail truck that was outside.”

Students had positive feelings about the event.

“I think it’s really great that they put something together for us,” said Sophie Paul Paquette, a first-year film and media student.

“They’re getting people all together, you know, having fun and stuff for a good start to the semester. So I really think it’s pretty cool.”

“I think it was really cool, especially since it was free. It was nice to have a lot of fun and just to take a break. It’s especially nice since we just started school again,” Paquette added.

Some students feel like these events are the SA’s way of making up for the recent program and budget cuts from the school.

“I mean, at least the school as a whole is putting something together for its community,” said Ethan Laing, a first-year film and media student.

“Like, the school is releasing budgets and everything for some things because they were cutting more programs. So, I think the SA does this kind of stuff to say, ‘If the college is gonna kick your asses, we’re gonna at least butter you up’,” he added.

The open arcade was the main attraction for AC Day 1 this semester, with much time and money invested to make it happen.

Conversations about this event began around six months ago, according to Goldfarb, with finances being a big talking point.

“There’s a lot of conversation in terms of you know, setup, insurance costs and all of that,” Goldfarb said. “So, two days in Ottawa, and then one day they were in Pembroke. In total, it was $30,000 because of three days. So, $10,000 per day.”

The experience students had made it all worthwhile, according to Alain Cyr-Russo, senior student life manager for the SA.

Paquette was impressed.

“I just got here so we’ve only played the soccer game so far, and that was really fun,” Paquette said. “I can’t wait to see what else is happening here. I’ve got my eyes on the basketball court and the racing one. I’m pretty excited.”

While the open arcade event finished this past Tuesday, the SA has more events in the works.

“Well for this week, it’s movie night tonight, Wednesday is Dirty Bingo, Friday is karaoke, and then next week is our mental health awareness week,” Cyr-Russo said.

“We’ve got Fresh for Five next week too, where students can buy bags of fresh fruits and vegetables for just five bucks each.

“We’ve got other big events coming up as well, such as Algonquin’s Got Talent, an Ottawa Charge PWHL game we’re selling tickets for, and we’ve got wrestling in February,” he added.