Passion for politics, religion, activism and ... medieval reenactment.

It was all there as hundreds of student and departmental organizations fanned out over the University of Michigan Diag today to attract new members during Festifall. The event is put on by the office of student activities and leadership. Its partner event, NorthFest, is Sept. 17 on the North Campus Diag.

One of the quirkier groups on U-M's campus got plenty of attention and has hundreds of members. The squirrel club's sole purpose is to keep campus squirrels full of peanuts, its president reported.

Peter Feng, general biology sophomore, said the allure, for him, is quite simple: "I like squirrels."

For more information on the 1,448 registered student groups, visit Maize Pages.

U-M's student government, the Michigan Student Assembly, doled out $320,237 to student organizations last year.

Funding, explained Abhishek Mahanti, the MSA president, comes from a $7.19 per semester fee tacked onto students' tuition bills.