College Democrats Support PBHA

Overruling its outgoing president's objections, the Harvard-Radcliffe College Democrats voted Wednesday night to endorse the recent resolution by Phillips Brooks House Association, Inc. (PBHA) to become autonomous from its University parent organization, Phillips Brooks House (PBH).

Following the controversial appointment of Assistant Dean for Public Service Judith H. Kidd last month, PBHA voted to raise funds in order to hire its own employees and to seek further financial independence from the University.

Approving a measure sponsored by Roy E. Bahat '97, a member-at-large of the College Democrats, the 50-member club also voted to allow PBHA to use the College Democrats' name in publicizing the independence drive and the Student Empowerment Rally, to be held Thursday.

"I feel it's important that student groups which support the interests of student empowerment support PBH[A]," said Bahat, who is also a PBHA member.

"We endorsed it because we saw it fundamentally as an issue of student empowerment," said Seth D. Hanlon '97, the club's president-elect.

Some club members, however, questioned the proposed structure of an independent PBH.

"I voted against [the resolution] mostly because I think it's still unclear how the new PBH structure is going to work," said Derek T. Ho '96, the group's outgoing president, who was one of three club members who opposed the measure.

"The resolution doesn't go into detail about the structure after autonomy has been gained, and I think there's a need for clarification," he said.