SocComm strives to create activities for whole WPI campus

Every year, there seems to arise misunderstandings of the Social Committee's ability to present activities for the WPI campus. While we strive to accommodate a wide array of student interests through the use of our various committees, there are many outside factors that affect our ability to consistently schedule top-tier entertainment for the campus. A recent instance of this was this year's Homecoming Weekend - when SocComm did not sponsor a campus-wide entertainer (although we did sponsor open bowling in the basement of Alumni Gym). While it remained a goal of utmost importance to provide an all-campus event for Homecoming Weekend, unfortunately our plans for an event never reached fruition.

This year's Homecoming Weekend is not the only example of students questioning the complications associated with planning a large entertainment act to perform on our campus. In the recent past, SocComm has received many inquiries, ranging from "Why didn't you get this band?" to "Why don't you have more programming geared towards this?". As one of the largest organizations on campus - an organization that accounts for a large portion of your social fee and represents a large portion of the programming that occurs on this campus - perhaps it is time that some "behind-the-scenes" work is exposed.

The success of a campus event, from planning to performance, requires several things to work in perfect harmony. For example, their must be an open venue for the performance, and many times it is difficult to secure a venue large enough for the performer due to scheduling conflicts with other organizations and athletic groups. Also, although our budget is healthy, many hidden costs add to the total cost of a performance, such as lighting, sound, transportation, and lodging. Lastly, we must assure that our available dates potentially match an open date in an artist's touring schedule. This, in fact, is the mostly difficult aspect of planning, and most commonly the single contributor to the downfall of planning an event. All of these decisions affected our ability to present a homecoming event this year. Additionally, we chose to respect traditional WPI events such as the Pops Concert, and not compete against their time slot.

Many of you may have valuable input that could help us better our campus programming - and the best way to share it is to get involved! We have a variety of committees to participate in, ranging from CoffeeHouse to Major and Special Events (MSEC). With the opening of the Campus Center planned for D-Term, we are at the beginning of a new era for student programming. For this to be successful, it will require a tremendous amount of student involvement. To find out more about SocComm, email soccomm@wpi.edu or stop by our office in Daniels Hall next to the Student Life office.