Emersonians compete in boating contest on the Charles

The Emerson Lions Dragon Boat Team, a group of 18 Emerson College staff, students, and alumni, made its second appearance at Boston’s Annual Dragon Boat Festival, June 11–12. Emerson joined 50 teams from corporations, clubs, and colleges all over New England who braved the rainy weather to compete in the 32nd annual traditional Chinese paddling competition.

The festival began June 11 at the Charles River with time trials to determine the finalists for the following day’s race. Emerson qualified with a time of 3 minutes and 5 seconds, beating the team’s time from last year’s regatta by more than 30 seconds.

Though the team did not walk away with a trophy this year, members were happy with their overall performance and are already looking forward to next year’s event.

“The team of staff, students, and alumni really came together as we developed our rowing and teamwork skills,” said team captain and Emerson Library Media Resources Coordinator Maureen Tripp. “I am very encouraged by our…progress this year and I look forward to our team line-up next year.”

The Emerson Lions Dragon Boat Team was sponsored by the following offices: Diversity and Inclusion, Communications and Marketing, Institutional Advancement, Human Resources, Government and Community Relations, and the Iwasaki Library.

“We’re always looking at ways to reach out to our local community, and this [was] an ideal opportunity to integrate Emerson’s community values with Boston’s celebratory cultural milestones,” said Gwendolyn Bates, associate vice president for diversity and inclusion.