This year’s event focuses on holistic lifestyle advantages.
Now that the spring semester has wrapped up, commencement ceremonies are finished and the campus is settling into its quieter summer mode, Texas Tech University is taking time to pamper its staff members.

Hosted by the Staff Senate, the annual Tech Advantage vendor fair gives Texas Tech staff members a chance to learn about the different businesses across campus and throughout Lubbock that offer discounts and incentives for Texas Tech employees.
"This year we want to focus on more holistic lifestyle advantages of being a Texas Tech employee, and we want to appeal to both current and prospective employees," said Staff Senate President Maggie J. Gilchrest. "To that end, we have first-time vendors like The West Texas Home Builders Association, who are about to start their summer Parade of Homes; Lubbock Moonlight Musicals; and the Volunteer Center of Lubbock. We want to showcase life in Lubbock for Texas Tech staff members and really provide more information on organizations in town that can enrich their lives."

The change of focus was the brainchild of Morgan Brannon, chair of the Staff Senate's public relations committee, who Gilchrest says realized the annual event had become limited in the support it provided staff members.
"As the Staff Senate, we want to invest not only in our staff members' campus concerns, but also holistically in their experiences as part of the larger Texas Tech community," Gilchrest said. "The senate is aware that we have families with young children, families who are elder caregivers, who are interested in the arts, interested in giving back and volunteering, who may be looking at building a house or finding new apartment accommodations, and other characteristics that enhance the quality of their lives in the Hub City, and therefore, their employment at Texas Tech University."

In addition to the freebies available to attendees at the vendor booths, organizers gave away more than 20 special door prizes donated by vendors.
Vendors for this year's Tech Advantage fair were:
- 4ORE Golf
- Advanced Graphix
- Bad Axe Raider
- Barnes & Noble at Texas Tech
- Big Bash Photo Booth
- eLearning & Academic Partnerships

- Environmental Health & Safety
- F45 Training West Lubbock
- Faculty & Staff Clinic
- Graduate School
- Hospitality Services
- Human Resources
- I Love Kickboxing
- Information Technology
- Little Guys Movers
- Llano Estacado Winery
- Lubbock Community Theatre
- Lubbock Moonlight Musicals
- Main Event Entertainment
- Mighty Wash
- Miss Megan's Make Room
- Obstacle Warrior Kids
- Pentegra
- Rec Sports
- Rock Solid Athletics
- Science Spectrum & OMNI Theater
- Staff Senate/Elections
- Student Financial Aid & Scholarships
- Texas Tech Alumni Association
- Texas Tech Athletics
- Texas Tech Club
- Texas Tech Public Media
- Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Printing Center
- Toreador Media
- TOVA Coffeehouse
- Transportation & Parking Services
- Undergraduate Admissions
- Volunteer Center of Lubbock
- West Texas Home Builders Association