Ziggy Points, a program that offers rewards to students for attending events, is entering its second year.

The program allows organizations to provide an incentive for students to attend their events.

Aaron McPherson, the graduate assistant director of Student Affairs, said the program was created during the fall semester of 2013 as a way to boost attendance of events.

“We’re always looking for a way to boost attendance,” McPherson said. “[Ziggy Points] provide rewards to students who attend.”

Students who attend events don’t need to do much to earn Ziggy Points, McPherson said. Simply finding the Ziggy Points station and swiping their student IDs will earn them their 100 Ziggy Points.

Points are entirely cumulative and when you redeem a reward, your total doesn’t diminish, he said.

The rewards are set at 500 point intervals and include t-shirts, sunglasses or a Ziggy Points “easy button,” a water bottle, a padfolio and a beach towel, respectively.

The program also selects the top 25 point-earning students at the end of the spring semester and invites them to a raffle for grand prizes, he said.

Prizes aren’t final for this year yet, he said, but they’ve come up with some preliminary ideas such as offering a free meal plan, a free parking pass or offering the ability to set the menu for one day at the Oaks dining hall.

“We’re still working on other prize ideas,” he said.

Steve Kampf, the assistant vice president of student affairs and director of Recreation and Wellness, has used Ziggy Points for some of the events at the Student Recreation Center.

“It’s a great program for getting students involved,” Kampf said. “It provides students an alternative instead of going downtown or staying in their rooms.”

The recent “Pajama Party” event on Dec. 4 used Ziggy points, as did the “Monster Mash” event in October, Kampf said.

Last year the Student Recreation Center provided free rounds of golf on the University golf course as one of the grand prize rewards.

Research shows that if more students get involved with campus activities, they’re more likely to stay in school, Kampf said.

The criteria for making an event a Ziggy Point event are simple.

“The event has to be hosted by an on-campus department and be free of charge and open to all students for it to qualify,” McPherson said.

If that’s the case, the department can submit a proposal to have its event offer Ziggy Points.

Cassandra Garcia, a junior medical lab sciences major, attended a few Ziggy Points events this past year.

“I went to a few sporting events,” Garcia said. “I ended up falling short by a couple hundred points for a reward though.”