CCSC Candidates

Music blared in the Lerner Piano Lounge as CCSC candidates socialized with students to gain the support of potential voters. With the Campaign Kick-Off, prospective council members launched their campaigns and discussed their plans for gaining support from their peers.

"To prepare for these elections I think has been probably the most grueling task I've had for the three years that I've been at Columbia."

"I really want to bring the energy and perspectives that I have had for the past three years into CCSC for next year."

"This is something you've been building up for three years you've been working on, projects you've been doing, things you've been accomplishing."

"I'm just going to talk to people. Flyering is one thing, but people really need to get to know you just by canvasing when people are out on Low sun bathing, dorm storming, and going to John Jay and shaking hands."

Many groups emphasized the need for more student input in CCSC decisions and the need to build a stronger community on Columbia's campus.

"One thing I really hope to do is continue a relationship with the students. I want them to know that CCSC is not just a group of 20 students making decisions for everyone, but literally them making the decisions, and the 20 students just executing them."

"The first thing that we want to do, and I'm talking in a more abstract conceptual idea, is really transform the culture of CCSC. We don't look at it anymore as a club or a clique. We want to look at it as more of a community, and a community that will actually include student groups and student organizations that feel neglected and overlooked from Student Council."

Students will cast their vote on April 13th. Because voting is just around the corner, the candidates strive to attract student support with persistence and enthusiasm.

Bacchanal Lineup

This past Sunday, the line up was announced for Bacchanal's annual Spring Concert.  Each year, Bacchanal brings big name artists to campus to put on a show just for Columbia students.  On April 24th, former Wu Tang member Ghostface Killah, indie band Of Montréal, and hip hop artist Wiz Khalifa will bring the beat to Low Plaza just as students prepare to enter Final Exam Season.  This year's concert promises to be just what students need to let loose before the final stretch to graduation.

40s on 40 returns

Bacchus, for which Bacchanal is named, is the Roman god of wine and intoxication, and there was plenty of intoxication at this year's 40s on 40 event.

The tradition dates back about 10 years. Seniors sit on the steps and sip 40oz of malt liquor to mark 40 days before graduation. For the past two years, student councils sponsored a fenced-off barbecue with beer, but canceled the event this year due to its unpopularity and hefty price.

Around 150 students gathered on the steps shortly after noon on Thursday, watched over by public safety officers, SDA, OMA and Residential Life advisers, and even the university chaplain.

Seniors tried to disguise their drinks by pouring them into coffee cups, nalgene bottles and even orange juice cartons. Public safety officers asked students with see-through containers to pour out their drinks and confiscated open bottles.

Census

RAs all over campus handed out the 2010 Census forms this week, asking students to fill them out and return them by the beginning of next week. Although the government struggles with getting people to respond quickly and efficiently, the Columbia community is working to ensure the timely mailing of every Census.

Associate Vice President of Student Auxiliary Services, Scott Wright said, "This is the way we're doing the census in America so it's pretty important, I guess - just to make sure we're doing the right things."

Despite the worries of some of their peers, many students are showing their support for the goals of the Census.

One student noted, "I know some people see it as an invasion of privacy but I don't because, as Paul was saying, that the government needs to know how many people there are and where they're living just so that they can provide amenities for people that are necessities for society to function properly."

"If not enough people do the census there won't be enough supplies for everybody or buses or subways, etc," said another student.

While some students have never filled out the Census before, the government and Columbia administration took steps to ensure that the process minimized student confusion.

One freshman said, "I was confused about filling it out here or at home because my mom said she didn't know if she should put me down on the list."

But Wright clarified that "it's very clear that you do not list in your document anybody who's away at college."

As the due date approaches, students who have not turned in their Census feel the pressure to turn their forms in so that they can be counted.

College Days

This Friday, students in the College kicked off the annual College Days, a week of events celebrating school-spirit and pride in Columbia College. Themed as a trip around the most famous locations of New York City, CCSC organized a number of events for the coming week, including the 99 Columbians Art Exhibition and a chat with the deans of the College. The fans of the TV show Glee get a special treat with the showing of the returning episode on Low Plaza this Tuesday evening. The week-long celebration will conclude on April 14th with a number of performances and free food from vendors around New York City.

Barnard Chair of Trustees Quindlen steps down

This past week, Pulitzer Prize Winning Author and Journalist, Anna Quindlen, stepped down from her position as Chair to the Barnard College Board of Trustees. As a chair for seven years, she passes the torch to her successor, Jolyne Caruso-FitzGerald, president of the global investment firm Platinum Gate Capital Management .  A Barnard trustee since 2000, FitzGerald's philanthropic efforts include support for women and education, specifically as an advisory board member and investor in Golden Seeds, a group focusing on women-owned companies. As a result of her generous contribution, the Lobby of Barnard's new Diana Center bears Caruso-FitzGerald's name. Fitzgerald's position will be effective at the end of this academic year.

Greek Life

Greek life on Columbia campus typically involves only a small percentage of students. This pledge season, however, sororities and fraternities report a 30 percent increase in the number of women registered. Are Greek organizations becoming a more vocal part of the Columbia community? I sat down with students around campus to discuss the role Greek life plays at Columbia and what influence it has on them.

"I haven't really noticed that much of an increase in Greek life.  The only time I've even noticed sororities would be, I think, during Rush Week when they were out shouting until 2 or 3 in the morning on weeknights."

"I would definitely say I've noticed an increase.  In a lot of my classes, there are more people in sororities than I would have expected."

As the number of Greeks increases, Columbians do not seem concerned about their growing numbers. Some believe the increase could be beneficial to the surrounding community.

"More people involved means more people that could be involved in something like community service and if those organizations would set it as their goal to do something beneficial for the community, then I would say that would be a good thing."

"I don't really have an opinion on it.I don't think it's necessarily good or necessarily bad, it's whatever people feel like doing."

We will see whether the apparent increase in Greeks will continue in the coming years, as well as how it will affect student life in the Columbia Community.

Labor Dept killing internships?

The Labor Department says it will crack down on private firms that fail to properly pay interns. Some states, including New York have already opened investigations.

Regulators say violations are widespread but interns who fear for their jobs generally do not come forward.

An unpaid internship is illegal if it does not satisfy six federal legal requirements. Those criteria stipulate that the intern should receive training comparable to that given in an academic or vocational school, that the intern must not displace regular paid workers and that the employer should derive "no immediate advantage" from the intern.

Less affluent students may not have the money to take on an unpaid internship. Some interns also complain that they receive no compensation in return for hours of menial work.

In an opinion piece for Bloomberg, columnist Amity Shales says that the move could damage job prospects for Ivy League students, who see unpaid internships as a stepping stone to long-term salaried positions. Shales claims that companies will fire their interns rather than pay them.

Sports Roundup

Columbia basketball head coach Joe Jones announced Friday that he will leave Columbia to become associate head coach at Boston College.

Jones has led the Lions to three straight 7-7 seasons in conference play—from 2006-2009. However, this past season, Columbia finished 5-9 in the Ancient Eight, which was good enough to tie for fifth.

Saturday, the Men's Crew team defended the Childs Cup against Penn and Princeton. However in the final stretch, Princeton pulled off the win, with Columbia in second and Penn trailing at third. Next week the crew team will take on Penn and Princeton for the Blackwell Cup.

Class Day Speaker MOS

Columbia University has announced its three spokespersons for College Day. Ben Jealous, the youngest CEO of NAACP, is speaking for Columbia College. Meryl Streep, the winning actress of 16 Academy Awards, is speaking for Barnard College. And Paul Brandt-Rauf,the Dean of the School of Health at the University of Illinois, for SEAS. The students had mixed feelings.

A exclaimed one excited Barnard student, "I'm so excited that Meryl Streep is coming. I've seen a lot of her films including Julie & Julia."

A SEAS student was not so impressed, as he said, "The speaker that we have for SEAS, compared to who we have for Barnard, Meryl Streep, the speaker for SEAS nor the speaker for Columbia College is that interesting."

One Columbia College student thought her speaker was impressed after hearing about her speaker: "I, at first, did not know who Ben Jealous was. Now that I hear about who he is and what he's done, I'm really excited about him coming here. Compared to Merly Streep, she has more fame but I think our guy has a lot of credit. So I'm excited."

Except for Barnard, however, students said the schools could have done better.

While a Columbia College student was excited: "I think for our class speaker, it would be great to have James Cameron. The obsess he created with Avatar, he can come in and talk about being James Cameron," the Barnard College student [could not] really think of other people I would want to come."

One Columbia College student was satisfied with Ben Jealous but thought "it really would have been great if we could have had Obama. He had a Nobel Peace Prize."

"If Barnard could have Meryl Streep we can at least get Lady Gaga," commented one SEAS student.

Columbia University Class Day is on May 16th for SEAS and Barnard College. Columbia College will have its Class Day on May 17th. More information is available on Columbia's Commencement 2010 website.