Polish Students Society

The Polish Students Society at Barnard and Columbia began several years ago as the Barnard Polish Club, founded by Ania Czaplinski BC'06 SIPA'07. It has since expanded to Columbia and seeks to include members of the Polish community and those interested in Polish culture from across the university and the Morningside Heights community.

The Polish Students Society exists to promote greater understanding of Polish culture, public affairs, society, and history throughout the Columbia community. One need not be Polish to join, but may simply be interested in the country and its rich and ancient traditions. The club is recognized by both Barnard and Columbia. Polish Students Society brings internationally renowned speakers to campus, hosts the annual Chopin Piano Competition, holds exhibitions, memorials and traditional holiday celebrations in the Polish custom, presents screenings of movies by great Polish film directors, holds a regular informal Polish conversation hour for those seeking to get in touch again with their legacy and language skills, and leads gourmet field trips to Greenpoint in Brooklyn. Members of the Polish Students Society march in the New York City's annual Pulaski Day Parade with a Columbia banner and keep in touch with their counterparts at NYU to discuss joint projects and to support each other's mission. When all is said and done, Polish Students Society is a group of people remarkably supportive of each other that has a great time with revivals of a culture that stood at the cradle of the American revolution as much as the French did, and that has contributed many heroes to its legacy. Not less than 75 million Americans nowadays claim Polish heritage and descent, and the Polish Students Society enjoys reaching out to them in every way it can, as well as to institutions, scholars and organizations in Poland.

Website: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/pss/