A Day in the Boylston Student Center

I had a dream the other night that a generous alum had donated $7 million toward the construction of a student center for Harvard's uncomfortably decentralized campus. Of course, that's what really happened last week when Katherine Bogdonovich Loker helped move along plans to turn Memorial Hall into the first-year dining hall, theatre and all-purpose campus meeting place.

But my dream was better. I had herdonate the money to turn Boylston Hall (that big gray stone building next to Widener where they always have the blood drives--just think how much blood they could collect!) into the center of Harvard social life.

I grew up across the street from the student center at the college where my father teachers. I spent a lot of time there--playing video games, buying gum and pencils, riding up and down the elevator, watching TV, and just hanging out. I loved it, and I wasn't even in college.

There are great possibilities for a central meeting place for students on a campus as large and fragmented as Harvard's. Right now, the only place on campus where you can meet with your friends is in a dining hall or in your room--and those aren't always convenient options.

That's why Boylston would be perfect for what a student center should be--which is not just an assortment of rooms in basement like Memorial Hall will be. Here's what they could do with Boyleston:

.Ticknor Lounge--When it ain't broke, don't fix it. They wouldn't have to change the name or the purpose. Just beef up the magazine and newspaper subscriptions, put some student art up on the walls for display, throw in a couple of poetry readings every now and then and you have a perfect student center reading room.

.The auditorium--They could even leave this alone too. Install a movies screen if they don't already have one and have a weekly theme films series. Have mock debates between rival clubs (i.e. Democrats and Republicans). Show student film series. Have a comedy night. Invite faculty members or administrators to give lectures or meet informally with students.

.The basement--Gut the entire floor and turn it into a big cafe/game room/party space. Equip the space with video games, pool tables, air hockey and other games. A lot of other schools have coffee houses (like the space in the Science Center) where student can go have coffee and hang out. Rudenstine and Jerry Green could stop by for coffee and find out what's going on around campus. Teaching fellows could hold office hours there instead of the smoky lairs of The Coffee Connection and the Pamplona. Some schools sponsor weekly events like folk singing, poetry reading and comedy specials. Some schools provide these for free, but that may be asking for too much.

The basement space could also be available for groups to have parties on weekends or for special events. It would provide an alternative to house dining halls and would offer first year students an alternative to breaking into squash courts to hold parties.

.The upper floors--There are now offices and class rooms in Boylston. These could be turned into quieter student lounges and meeting rooms for campus groups, like they are currently planning for the Memorial Hall basement. They could turn one into a television lounge area like at the law school in Harkness Commons. One could be a study room. They could still hold classes and section there during the day if necessary.

The permanent offices would have to move. But it shouldn't be so hard to find a new place for a couple of offices. The professors who work in these offices live off campus anyway. They probably wouldn't mind being moved into a space that is closer to parking facilities.

.The tunnel to Widener--Just a thought. But they are so close that it would probably be convenient.

Typically, Harvard isn't very interested in student suggestions, so I might as well be Nile basin. They didn't ask anyone (until it was too late) about our suggestions for a University president. They never ask us about selecting deans or overseers or any other administrators who will governs us for the four years we are at school. And a student center, well, it's not like the entire concept is supposed to satisfy our needs, now is it?

It is very encouraging that Harvard has finally recognized the need for a student center. But I have little doubt that they will pass into a construction phase at Memorial Hall without asking students what they think.

In the University's favor, Memorial Hall is probably the only place on campus big enough to accommodate 1600 first-year students. But there are other factors to consider. For instance, what will they do with the 1000 students who flock out of Ec. 10 in Sanders every Tuesday and Thursday at exactly 1 P.M.? And why force those poor students to listen to ecomonic theory accompanied by the pungent odor of meatless lasagna? And what about the Union dorms? Twenty-nine Garden Street is probably about the same distance from Memorial Hall as Penny-packer.

Harvard, for some reason, wants to move the Union. Maybe the heads of the school have something against antlers and old butter pats. Maybe the powers that be are tired of having to walk past first year students on their way to the faculty club. Whatever the reason, they are convinced that the Union must go and that a student center will help us get over its demise.

I don't know if the bait and switch will work. I would rather keep dreaming.