2008 Woodie Awards
The Springfests of yore
Issue date: 4/8/08 Section: Opinion
One part of UVM's spring awakening ritual is the annual Springfest celebration, a large outdoor concert that is free for students and features several big name headlining acts and takes up an entire Saturday with music, sunshine and the great outdoors.
Campus is actively anticipating the beautiful spring weather (hopefully) and the eclectic, but entertaining lineup. Everything is there except for one thing: it's not free anymore.
And although the stage is set for a musical celebration of the warm weather, the newly attached price tag is dampening the event's reputation.
No one wants to sound like a whining freeloader, and we are aware that $10 is a steal, but this is part of an alarming trend here at UVM. The students sometimes are forgotten.
College is about education, learning and development. But UVM has carved itself a unique niche in creating an environment that is healthy and competitive academically, but also fosters a healthy and vibrant social scene. Everyone leaves this place with positive memories.
With so much creative drive, the University has done many good things for student organizations that push the University into the future, but the much-needed support has fallen short exactly when the students need it most. And this failed support threatens the culture here that many of us have fallen in love with.
SA Concerts brought us three concerts last semester and as a result they couldn't get enough money together to give us a free show. Is that their fault?
Partly so, but college is about learning in a safe environment. An environment where we have real world experience, but the institution we attend can also give us a helping hand when we make mistakes.
Couldn't someone have bailed them out? We pay a lot of money to attend this University and we work hard. As a result we deserve to have a little fun sometimes.
There are an incredible amount of dedicated student organizations that are trying to bring a service to the student body and it's hard to believe that when they fall short of their goals it wasn't because they weren't trying their hardest.
The administration and the SGA need to remember that while we as a University look to the future, the good things we currently have should not be forgotten.
This University has one thing many others don't, a distinct and attractive personality. It's just as important to maintain this quality as it is to build for the future.
Campus is actively anticipating the beautiful spring weather (hopefully) and the eclectic, but entertaining lineup. Everything is there except for one thing: it's not free anymore.
And although the stage is set for a musical celebration of the warm weather, the newly attached price tag is dampening the event's reputation.
No one wants to sound like a whining freeloader, and we are aware that $10 is a steal, but this is part of an alarming trend here at UVM. The students sometimes are forgotten.
College is about education, learning and development. But UVM has carved itself a unique niche in creating an environment that is healthy and competitive academically, but also fosters a healthy and vibrant social scene. Everyone leaves this place with positive memories.
With so much creative drive, the University has done many good things for student organizations that push the University into the future, but the much-needed support has fallen short exactly when the students need it most. And this failed support threatens the culture here that many of us have fallen in love with.
SA Concerts brought us three concerts last semester and as a result they couldn't get enough money together to give us a free show. Is that their fault?
Partly so, but college is about learning in a safe environment. An environment where we have real world experience, but the institution we attend can also give us a helping hand when we make mistakes.
Couldn't someone have bailed them out? We pay a lot of money to attend this University and we work hard. As a result we deserve to have a little fun sometimes.
There are an incredible amount of dedicated student organizations that are trying to bring a service to the student body and it's hard to believe that when they fall short of their goals it wasn't because they weren't trying their hardest.
The administration and the SGA need to remember that while we as a University look to the future, the good things we currently have should not be forgotten.
This University has one thing many others don't, a distinct and attractive personality. It's just as important to maintain this quality as it is to build for the future.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Cat
posted 4/08/08 @ 10:41 AM EST
Springfests of yore? Springfest only started a few years ago as part of an effort to cease 420 anyway. It's still a fairly new event & there is very little precedent to justify it being free. (Continued…)
Kevin
posted 4/09/08 @ 12:44 AM EST
Generally, the president's office was a large part of the SpringFest Budget...Fogel cut us out this year.
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