Community Building the Goal of King, Driskell

While most candidates are following in the Fly-by and fro-yo footsteps of current Undergraduate Council President Beth A. Stewart '00 and this year's council, T. Christopher King '01 and Fentrice D. Driskell '01 want the council to assume a broader role.

The centerpiece of King and Driskell's platform is a long-term community-building initiative.

Rev. Peter Gomes has agreed to head up the project, which will engage Harvard students, faculty and House Masters in a dialogue intended to form a shared vision of community at Harvard, King says.

"We want to build a community of people who are just as excited to be here as when they first opened their acceptance letters," Driskell says.

Central to their ideas of community is the creation of a student center, a proposal which the administration has long resisted. King and Driskell advocate using a portion of the council's $40,000 in newly found funds to write a $10,000 check to the Development Office to symbolize students' commitment to the center.

And they propose spending $15,000 on a contest to encourage collaboration between student groups.

Campaigning for community has been tough, King says.

"We're going against grain," he says. "These issues are not as easy to articulate, but they are the issues that will really change people's lives on campus."

King and Driskell have been taking their message to voters. Over the past two weeks they have held several rallies featuring clap-along renditions of "Stand By Me" performed by members of the Opportunes and testimonials from supporters.

They say their campaign, which has also included meetings with proctor groups and campus leaders, is a first step toward increasing community-building dialogue.

Some Christian students have rallied around the campaign. One member of the Election Commission was forced to resignafter she sent an e-mail message to theHarvard-Radcliffe Christian Fellowship urgingmembers to pray for the King campaign.

But King, who is himself a member of ChristianImpact, says the e-mail message was unsolicited,and emphasizes that while his campaign appeals toreligious students, it is not a religiouscampaign.

"Religion is important to who we are, but thefoundation of this campaign is diversity," Kingsays. "We have students of all colors and allfaiths. This is the most diverse group of peopleworking on any campaign."

King and Driskell say their years on thecouncil have given them the experience necessaryto pursue tried-and-true student service concernsin addition to their broader agenda. As co-chairof the Campus Life Committee (CLC), King is theonly sitting chair of a committee running forpresident this year.

He cites his work planning this year'sHarvard-Yale tailgate as an example of the type ofcommunity-building event the council shouldpromote. King also helped organize theThanksgiving shuttle service program. He iscurrently in his second year as a delegation chairand council representative.

Driskell served as vice chair of the CLC lastyear and is currently chair of services for thecommittee. Last year, she helped organize thefirst-year formal, and served as vice president ofthe Freshman Black Table. Outside the council,King is Crimson Key Society member and Driskell isa member of the Kuumba Singers.

Their vision has earned King and Driskell kudosfrom campus leaders.

Former presidential candidate Jobe G. Danganan'99, whose progressive platform earned him secondplace in last year's presidential elections,endorsed the ticket because of its communityfocus.

"Their platform is totally innovative and new,"says Danganan, who is also the former president ofthe Minority Students Association. "What sets themapart is that they have a wider vision for theHarvard campus [and] they are not afraid to tacklesocial issues."

Danganan says he was unable to support the vicepresidential bid of his former running mate, KamilE. Redmond '00, because her agenda has shiftedtoward student services.

King emphasizes that his bid for the presidencyis just one part of his longstanding campaign tocreate a healthier Harvard community.

"We were working on these issues long before wedecided to put this together as a platform," Kingsays. "For a long time, we didn't think thecouncil was the right atmosphere to address theseissues in."

But King and Driskell say they have becomeconvinced that the council does have the potentialto address big issues.

"The council is like the little engine thatcould. Someone told it that it couldn't, so wejust stopped trying," Driskell says.

Even if their bids for the top councilpositions do not succeed, King and Driskell saytheir campaign will have made a positive impact.

"Win or lose, just talking about these issuesis beneficial to the Harvard community," Kingsays

But King, who is himself a member of ChristianImpact, says the e-mail message was unsolicited,and emphasizes that while his campaign appeals toreligious students, it is not a religiouscampaign.

"Religion is important to who we are, but thefoundation of this campaign is diversity," Kingsays. "We have students of all colors and allfaiths. This is the most diverse group of peopleworking on any campaign."

King and Driskell say their years on thecouncil have given them the experience necessaryto pursue tried-and-true student service concernsin addition to their broader agenda. As co-chairof the Campus Life Committee (CLC), King is theonly sitting chair of a committee running forpresident this year.

He cites his work planning this year'sHarvard-Yale tailgate as an example of the type ofcommunity-building event the council shouldpromote. King also helped organize theThanksgiving shuttle service program. He iscurrently in his second year as a delegation chairand council representative.

Driskell served as vice chair of the CLC lastyear and is currently chair of services for thecommittee. Last year, she helped organize thefirst-year formal, and served as vice president ofthe Freshman Black Table. Outside the council,King is Crimson Key Society member and Driskell isa member of the Kuumba Singers.

Their vision has earned King and Driskell kudosfrom campus leaders.

Former presidential candidate Jobe G. Danganan'99, whose progressive platform earned him secondplace in last year's presidential elections,endorsed the ticket because of its communityfocus.

"Their platform is totally innovative and new,"says Danganan, who is also the former president ofthe Minority Students Association. "What sets themapart is that they have a wider vision for theHarvard campus [and] they are not afraid to tacklesocial issues."

Danganan says he was unable to support the vicepresidential bid of his former running mate, KamilE. Redmond '00, because her agenda has shiftedtoward student services.

King emphasizes that his bid for the presidencyis just one part of his longstanding campaign tocreate a healthier Harvard community.

"We were working on these issues long before wedecided to put this together as a platform," Kingsays. "For a long time, we didn't think thecouncil was the right atmosphere to address theseissues in."

But King and Driskell say they have becomeconvinced that the council does have the potentialto address big issues.

"The council is like the little engine thatcould. Someone told it that it couldn't, so wejust stopped trying," Driskell says.

Even if their bids for the top councilpositions do not succeed, King and Driskell saytheir campaign will have made a positive impact.

"Win or lose, just talking about these issuesis beneficial to the Harvard community," Kingsays