Council Re-Approves Funds For Disputed Advocate Grant

Reversing a previous decision, the Undergraduate Council last night visual to award the Harvard Advocate $1,000 toward the publication of a special issue. The award was part of a $3,394 package of emergency grants.

The council originally awarded $1,000 to the group last spring but the grant became null when the group failed to claim it before the July expiration date. Advocate lobbyists in the Council reintroduced the grant, which had already failed once this semester, as an amendment to the fall budget.

Those in favor of reawarding the grant urged the council to be consistent with last year's decision, while those opposed argued that the group was irresponsible not to notify the council that it was not ready to pick up the award.

Citing the fact that the council almost unanimously approved the award last spring, Michael J. George '84 said. "We're not being consistent if we deny the grant now."

Other awards included in the emergency grants package were $1,041 for the first two issues of a new humor magazine. "The Harvard Optimist Club" and $577 to the Harvard Computer Society for a newsletter.

The council considers emergency grants on a rolling basis for those organizations who missed the October deadline or whose proposals were rejected in the council's original grant budget.

The council who voted to approve the concept of a campus-wide "Bahamas Party" in he held the first weekend of January reading period. The party's door prize will be a trip for two to the Hahamas or some other comparable resort, to be financed by admission charges as well as the council's social committee budget.

In other business, the council voted down a proposal to publicize the $3.50 term bill refund available to all undergraduates who do not wish to help finance the council.

Those opposed to the proposal said that a student who was strongly opposed to the term bill fee used to levy funds for the council should have enough initiative to submit his request to University Hall before the April deadline. "I don't think it's up to us to go out of our way to get students their $3.50," said Toni Tease '87.

The original proposal, submitted by Timothy J. Keating '85, provided for postcards to be distributed in dining halls which students could mail back to the council for a refund.

Keating said that very few people are award that it is possible to get a refund. He added that a good number of people are opposed to or apathetic about the council, citing the fact that only 43 percent of the students approved the council's constitution in the 1982 referendum which established the council.