Summers To Co-Sponsor Springfest

President Lawrence H. Summers announced plans to co-sponser the annual Springfest last night in his second appearance at an Undergraduate Council meeting since he took office last summer.

In addition to providing more funding, Summers wants to expand the scope of the council event by including “staff members and their families in a more active way,” he said.

Council President Sujean S. Lee ’03 welcomed Summers’ gesture and noted that it represented the new president’s commitment to student life and visibility on campus.

“The President’s Office has tremendous resources to contribute,” said Lee, who noted that Springfest will likely feature better entertainment, food, and rides. “It’s going to be much more fun,” she said.

Former Council President Paul A. Gusmorino ’02 emphasized the importance of opening the event to the entire Harvard community, saying Springfest will be an “even more significant event.”

Summers has made unprecedented efforts to work with the council in contrast to his predecessor Neil L. Rudenstine, who attended no council meetings during his ten-year tenure.

“This is the second time he’s visited the UC this year, which is a very positive step because he’s really reaching out to students in a stronger way than was done before,” Gusmorino said.

After announcing his plans to co-sponsor Springfest, Summers fielded questions from both council members and other students who attended the meeting last night.

Responding to a question, Summers emphasized the power of advocacy in students’ dealings with the administration.

“To make arguments on things they believe in and to engage in thoughtful advocacy is the way students can have the biggest impact,” he said. “We will always listen, we will always read, and we will always be prepared to defend the positions that we take.”

Summers also asked for student input on the Core curriculum. Several students commented that they must sometimes take “dumbed-down classes” and spoke in favor of expanding the list of classes that would fulfill the core.

In response, Summers noted that if “motivated” students opt into departmental classes, the incentive to create good Core classes would evaporate.

Amid many laughs, two students raised their “serious” concerns about the College’s dearth of course offerings concerning Canada and its people. Others questioned Summers about the College’s strict study abroad policies.

Responding to these questions, Summers said he will work “to globalize Harvard over time.”

However, throughout his comments, Summers emphasized that courses need not necessarily explore all cultures and places. Rather, they should teach “modes of thinking,” he said.

Summers also addressed other issues including Harvard social life, grade inflation, the Harvard connection to the Enron Corporation, and the Freshman Seminar Program before ceding the floor to Lee.

He said he plans to reprise his visit to the council once a semester.

Summers also encouraged non-council members to attend those meetings, saying he plans to “respond to questions or comments about a broader range of issues and issues that may be of concern to students outside the UC.”

After Summers left, Lee clarified her recent proposal to bring controversial issues before the council, saying that she will address only issues that pertain to student life at Harvard.

“I don’t want the UC to become political. I just want the UC to become more active in addressing student concerns,” she said.

The council then passed two bills, one providing round trip tickets on a shuttle to New York City over Presidents’ Weekend, and another allocating funds for the Freshman Formal.

—Staff Writer Claire A. Pasternack can be reached at cpastern@fas.harvard.edu.