MEGAN ROBERTSON
HANNAH STIFFLER
STAFF WRITER
10/3/2022
Yik Yak, all drama or useful? Lately it has caused quite a stirrup on Alma College’s Campus. Yik Yak is an anonymous social media app that is used by many students here on campus to post things such as: student success, Fraternity Sorority life drama, Sports drama and dining successes and challenges in Hamilton.
Yik Yak has been popular on campus since Winter 2022 semester. Students most frequent Yik Yaks are about parties, complaints with the school or random blurbs.
“I do have Yik Yak and I might spend about 10 mins a day on it at the most” said Sawyer Hill (‘23). Hill is not the only student who is using this app often. Julis Gotaas (‘24) said “I have a Yik Yak and use it a few times per day.”
Hill said that he believes Yik Yak has led to behaviors in students such as “talking about issues students have with the school, which if faculty see that, [it] makes it a little easier for us to be heard.”
Gotaas said “Fraternity, sorority, and sports teams fighting each other are some of the behavioral patterns I observe most frequently on Yik Yak.”
“I think Yik Yak is just a vessel for common issues that occur at college campuses everywhere, especially small ones. Social media can promote misinformation and negative gossip just as much as it can allow for the sharing of news that people should know. The ability for Yik Yak to be anonymous just increases that tendency.” said Swalve.
Hill, who is the New Education Director of Sigma Chi, addressed the drama surrounding fraternities. He said “It serves very little purpose to see organizations having issues on the app. Many of us involved in fraternities are committed to the idea of [Fraternity/Sorority Life (FSL)] unity.”
Not only is there drama within the FSL organizations there are also arguments among sports teams.
“I don’t believe the conflicts between the sports teams on Yik Yak are reasonable because they frequently disagree on important issues,” said Gotaas, who is a member of the cross country and track teams.
Most students may not realize that Yik Yak does not only affect students but faculty and staff too. Natashia Swalve, Associate Provost and Associate Professor of Psychology, she said “I have heard of Yik Yak but I personally don’t have one. My students bring it up a lot in class.”
When asked, Swalve believes that faculty do have a right to be on Yik Yak. “Social media is not private and Yik Yak is no different, even though it’s anonymous. I could see it being useful to make sure that there isn’t an emergency others need to know about, or extreme misinformation being spread.”
It is faculty and staff’s right to have Yik Yak. Yik Yak is a social media platform just like any other. While students have to “worry” about their posts on there it is our chance as students to have a voice and not worry about the repercussions.
Yik Yak is appealing to students due to anonymity, drama and college updates.
On Yik Yak, users can upvote and downvote depending on your feelings of the post. Once a post gets downvoted five times, the post is removed. Like on other social media plastforms, the user is able to report posts to be removed.
However, some students refrain from getting it. “I have never had Yik Yak before, I didn’t know what it was. I haven’t heard anyone around me talk about Yik Yak” said Kennedy Case (‘25).
Case is adamant in the fact that she herself has never heard of anyone around her talking about Yik Yak or the posts contained on Yik Yak. Many Alma College students spend a considerable amount of time on the app. While Yik Yak has some controversy, it serves a purpose to campus life. Some drama, somwhat useful.
