AWC's 2015 Casino Night

On March 27th, the CSIC lobby transformed into a casino.  Students, dressed to the nines with sparkling masks, put down a couple hundred dollars on a hand of poker or bet it all on black at the roulette wheel.  All in fake money of course.  The AWC Casino Night 2015 brought over 200 students out of their rooms on a Friday night for blackjack, Caribbean stud poker, roulette, craps, and even a money wheel.  There were even a few tables of Texas Hold ‘Em, which filled up faster than the 400 levels.  Students got $500 in funny money to try their luck at the tables and compete for prizes. 

Google, Microsoft, Cipher Tech, and more sponsored the event.  They donated swag bags, paid for pizza, and distributed other small goodies.  Prizes this year ranged from stuffed animals to swag bags to even an Xbox One.  Since the theme was a Masquerade, there had to be a costume contest.  Well dressed students in lovely dresses and snappy suits competed for prizes from the Undergrad department.  The female winner had a very pretty, white dress, and the male winner had a chicken head mask.  A true masquerade.

Max Burns, junior and food director for the upcoming Bitcamp 2015, must subscribe to the philosophy of “go big or go home.”  By the end of the night, he had earned over $11,400 in funny money, which translated to 22 tickets for the raffle.  His secret?  “Just a lot of experience with blackjack,” he explained.  “I played it all evening.  I've played blackjack for years, so I've gotten used to how the probabilities are and when to hit/stay.”  Max ended up winning four prizes in the raffle.  He took home three Microsoft swag bags, complete with Windows 8.1 Professional.  Max also won a Google swag bag, which he graciously donated to another student.

All in all, the event was a huge success.  The Association of Women in Computing were not only able to raise money for the organization, but put on a fun and unique event for Computer Science students.