As part of the August 2026 issue of the NIRSA Wellbeing Briefing, supported by the NIRSA Foundation, we reached out to Paige Perkins, Assistant Director of Fitness (Group Fitness) at Purdue University Recreation & Wellness and Rian Knapp, Assistant Director of Fitness (Personal Training) at Purdue University Recreation & Wellness for a question-and-answer session about fostering social connection through fitness programs.
Wellbeing Briefing Work Group: What inspired you to focus on the social connection as it relates to your current offerings and programs?
Purdue University Recreation & Wellness: “Social connection has always been a natural part of fitness programming, but during the 2025-2026 academic year we became much more intentional about creating opportunities for students to build relationships. We recognized that students are experiencing high levels of loneliness, and campus recreation is in a unique position to help address that by creating welcoming spaces where students can connect while improving their wellbeing. Social connection was also a focus for Purdue Student Life during the 2025-2026 academic year.
We also knew from our own participant data that group exercise and personal training was already helping students form meaningful relationships. Before introducing intentional programming, 79% of participants reported developing meaningful connections with instructors, 75% attended classes with friends, and 66% had formed friendships through classes. Those results showed us that small additions focused on connection could help us to make an even greater impact.”
Who is the target audience and what strategies have you used to market and promote?
“Our target audience is all Purdue students. We intentionally design programs that appeal to both students who already participate in our fitness offerings and those who may be trying something new for the first time.
We promote our programs through social media posts, stories, and reels, flyers and A-frame signage throughout our facilities, email communication to previous participants, collaborations with other Recreation & Wellness areas, and partnerships across campus.
While those methods help, our strongest form of marketing continues to be word of mouth. When students have a great experience and feel connected to the people around them, they naturally invite their friends to attend the next event.”
How did you decide which programs to use in your effort to combat loneliness?
“We looked at programs that already had strong participation and asked how we could create simple opportunities for people to connect before, during, or after the class or event.
For example, outdoor yoga at a local coffee shop attracts students who may have never attended yoga before but enjoy being outside or grabbing coffee. While waiting for drinks, participants naturally start conversations, and many leave planning to attend another class together.
Our Taylor Swift Ride is another example. Students may sign up because they’re fans of Taylor Swift, even if they’ve never taken a cycling class. After class, a bracelet making activity and a photo opportunity encourage participants to stay, meet people with similar interests, and continue building connections outside of the workout.
For personal training, we offer weekly drop-in opportunities where students can ask questions about equipment, form, or other fitness questions without having to schedule a personal training session. These opportunities help remove barriers for students who may not be able to afford personal training or make the time commitment.
We host fun fitness challenges that create a low-pressure way for students in the gym to interact. The challenges encourage social connection in a space where many students are often focused on their own workouts, with their hoods up and headphones in. The challenges give students a fun reason to interact with others, build confidence in the gym, and get excited to come back each week for the next challenge.
Instead of creating entirely new programs, we focused on enhancing existing events with activities that encourage conversation and make it easier for students to meet one another.”
How long has the priority been on social connection for your department area?
“Community has always been part of Purdue Recreation & Wellness but intentionally designing programming around social connection became a priority during the 2025-2026 academic year. We shifted from allowing connections to happen naturally to intentionally creating programming, recognition opportunities, and staff initiatives that help participants feel like they belong.”
How has the programming campaign helped with the desired impact?
“The results have been very positive. Event surveys showed that 98% of participants felt the special events added value beyond their regular group fitness classes, and 83% reported feeling more connected to the GroupX community after attending.
The added programming efforts for personal training have helped us extend our reach outside of sessions and have raised awareness of personal training and our other small group offerings. Survey responses have shown that 90% of personal trainings clients feel a sense of social connection since participating in our programs.
We have also seen students stay after events to socialize, return to future programs with friends they met at previous events, and become more involved in our fitness community. Our goal was never just to get people into a workout. It is to help them build relationships that encourage them to come back, and we believe we’re seeing that happen.”
Where do you see growth potential or potential changes?
“We see the biggest opportunity for growth in reaching students who may not already identify as ‘fitness people.’ We also want to create more opportunities that encourage participants to come back after their first experience and continue building relationships. Finally, we’re interested in refining our data collection methods and collecting more long-term data on belonging and retention so we can better understand the lasting impact of these programs.”
What partnerships and other campus entities were involved in the implementation of the programming campaign?
“We constantly seek out partnerships across campus and the community. We collaborate regularly with the Purdue Center for Advocacy, Response, and Education and a local coffee shop to co-host indoor and outdoor yoga classes. We have also worked with the campus food pantry with food drives in our F45 and group fitness classes.
We work with residence halls, Greek life, off-campus apartment communities, student organizations, athletics, and student government to expand our reach and connect with students from across campus. These partnerships enhance opportunities for students to build meaningful connections and create a stronger sense of belonging both within our programs and on campus.”
What are the key performance indicators used to track the success of your programming campaign?
“We look at both participation and participant feedback to evaluate success. Our primary measures include:
- Special event attendance
- Repeat participation
- Survey responses
- Participant satisfaction
- Feelings of connection and belonging
- Whether participants felt the event added value beyond a traditional fitness class
- Whether participants would consider attending another event in the future
Our outreach allows students to provide feedback on which events or ideas for programming they would like to see more of in the future.
These measures help us understand not only how many students attend our programs, but whether we are creating experiences that encourage them to return and feel connected to the community.”
How do you balance the need for meeting revenue goals along with providing free offerings?
“Our philosophy is to keep barriers to participation as low as possible. Because of that, almost all our special events are offered free of charge and are supported through our departmental budget. We want students to feel comfortable trying something new without cost being a barrier.
At the same time, we do have revenue goals. F45 is a paid program that helps support our broader Group Fitness operation, and our Personal Training program is expected to be financially self-sustaining while also contributing to other program areas.
We see our free offerings as an investment rather than a cost. They introduce students to our staff, our facilities, and our community in a low-pressure environment. Many students who first attend a free event later become regular GroupX participants, purchase an F45 pass, or sign up for personal training. By creating positive first experiences and removing barriers to entry, we’re able to support both our mission of improving student wellbeing and the long-term sustainability of our programs.”
Check out Paige and Rian’s presentation
If you’re looking for more information about fostering social connection through fitness programs, check out Paige and Rian’s recent presentation slideshow on the topic which was delivered at the Big Ten Recreational Sports Conference. It’s a great chance to learn more about:
- The relationship between social connection, student wellbeing, and be able to articulate the role collegiate recreation can play in addressing student loneliness.
- How to identify and implement practical programming ideas that promote participant connection, including team-based challenges, milestone recognition, and low-barrier social events.
- How to develop intentional staff engagement strategies that foster peer mentorship, cross-format collaboration, and a culture of belonging within their recreation teams.
About Paige Perkins and Rian Knapp
Paige Perkins is currently Assistant Director of Fitness Programs at Purdue University Recreation and Wellness. She got her start in campus recreation while a student at Iowa State University. She earned her Bachelor of Science, Kinesiology and Exercise Science at Iowa State University and a Master of Science in Exercise Science from the University of Mississippi where she worked as a Fitness Graduate Assistant. She also has experience working in the boutique fitness space.
Rian Knapp is currently Assistant Director of Fitness Programs at Purdue University Recreation and Wellness. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Health Promotion from the University of Iowa where she held a few roles in the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center.
