Spring Concert Funds Set At $40K

The Undergraduate Council voted last night to spend $40,000 on its spring concert this year in hopes of securing a band with a bigger name than last fall’s Guster.

Potential performers include Vanilla Ice, Wyclef Jean, Nappy Roots and Snoop Dogg, according to council members.

Funding for the proposed concert, which will be held the same weekend as Springfest, represents approximately one-seventh of the council’s budget for the entire year. The University President’s Office will support the concert with funding as well. That funding will amount to about $20,000, council members said.

Debate on the concert bill, including the discussion of the proposed bands and the amount of presidential office funding, was restricted to two closed door sessions of the council—a move that some members criticized afterwards.

Adams representative Joshua A. Barro ’05 called last night’s second closed session “totally inappropriate” and said that the proceedings included “debate the campus deserves to know about.”

Council President Matthew W. Mahan ’05 said last night that closed sessions—during which discussion minutes are withheld from the public record—this semester have focused on “sensitive information” regarding Springfest and universal keycard access.

“Basically, when we are negotiating with the president’s office and the administration in general, we want to control the information that goes out,” Mahan said last night.

Mahan said that the concert has gained “considerable support” from Associate Dean of the College Judith H. Kidd and Assistant Dean of the College Paul J. McLoughlin II, whose support he said was “necessary for the concert to be successful.”

The council also approved a bill to partner with the President’s Office on Springfest—keeping with the precedent set during the past two years.

In other business, the council approved its third spring grants package, bringing the council’s total grants funding to over $28,000 for this semester. Before the grants were approved, the council heard testimony from a representative of the Catholic Students Association (CSA), which requested an increase—from $200 to $400—in funding last weekend’s When Hell Freezes Over Dance. The CSA charged $5 for admittance to the dance but was unable to cover expenses fully.

While the amendment did pass, some council members, including Joseph R. Oliveri ’05, cited concerns that the increased funding for the CSA would set a negative precedent for other student organizations.

“We shouldn’t be rewarding student groups for being financially irresponsible,” said Oliveri.

Sean N. Karamchandani ’05 disagreed with Oliveri, saying that the council should support student groups in their fundraising endeavors.

“We should be encouraging student groups to raise money in their own fundraiser events,” said Karamchandi. “It’s better for us in the long run.”

Some council members also raised objections to including a grant for the Harvard-Radcliffe Christian Fellowship (HRCF), continuing a debate from the past two weeks on the possible discriminatory nature of HRCF and its sister organization, the Asian American Christian Fellowship (AACF), whose constitutions require their officers to submit to an oath of faith.

The council voted to approve the AACF’s grant at last week’s meeting and did the same this week for the HRCF—despite attempts by some council members to block funding for the group.

The council also voted to join the Ivy Council—a consortium of student governments from each of the Ivy League schools—on a trial basis until the end of the term, at which time the council will vote to consider fully rejoining.

Harvard first left the Ivy Council in 2001 after citing fiscal and organizational mismanagement.

Council member Andrew C. Stillman ’06, who opposed the bill, argued that joining the council didn’t seem “very useful” and that the council’s time and money could be spent better elsewhere.

However, the council approved the test run by a 31 to 5 vote.

Russell M. Anello ’04, who voted for the bill, said that the “costs are minimal” during the trial period. The bill allocated a maximum of $500 this semester to send delegates to the Ivy Council Summit.A

The council also approved the purchase of a new $2,500 sound system—which student groups on campus will be allowed to borrow for their events—and allocated funding for the continuation of last semester’s “Loker Nights,” which will feature student bands and other events designed to bring social gatherings to Loker Commons.

In addition, the council re-authorized the popular shuttle service to Logan Airport and New York City for spring break. Students will be able to travel one way to Logan for $5 and to New York for $20.

The council voted as well to pass a resolution calling for all campus trash bins to be accompanied by recycling bins.

—Staff writer Jeffrey C. Aguero can be reached at aguero@fas.harvard.edu.