Diamondback Online - The University of Maryland's Independent Daily Student Newspaper

Issue date: 3/25/08 Section: Opinion

Media Credit: Daniel Marcin Daniel Marcin

Spring has sprung, and with it come warm weather, graduations, all those fountains turning on and the senior class gift pledge drive. Unfortunately, many seniors, including me, are completely unsatisfied with their class gift choice. However, when I learned the class of 1966 wanted to use their money to construct "a solid concrete gate at the Denton complex entrance to campus," I became a bit more comfortable with furnishing a hallway with a few sofas.
Nevertheless, here are eight ideas for the classes of 2009 and beyond so that future Senior Councils aren't forced to come up with ideas from scratch.
1. Wouldn't it be nice to start a tradition of doing something for our younger fellow Terps? I think we could bring some much needed fellowship to the campus by giving each incoming freshman a $20 textbook discount, redeemable at the University Book Center or the Maryland Book Exchange.
2. Along the same lines, what if we covered the "facilities fee" part of the dining plan for new freshmen? Well, currently at $439 per semester, it would take a remarkably selfless and philanthropic senior class to accomplish such a feat, but maybe it would attract enough attention to force Dining Services to explain why they charge students $439 before they even walk in the door.
3. Unhappy with the parking situation on the campus? Funding an entire garage is completely unrealistic, but as the pledge drive can bring in around $25,000, seniors could sponsor a row of spaces on a floor of any new garage that goes up on the campus.
4. But building garages means construction on the campus, and some don't like that distraction. Well, actually, most are OK with it but don't like it every day of their time on the campus. If I remember correctly, in my time here, Queen Anne's Hall's renovation overlapped with the Stamp Student Union's renovation, which overlapped with the Bioscience Research Building construction, which finally overlapped with Washington Quad's demise. If this is how you feel, you can take the senior class gift money and bribe the administration to not renovate anything on the campus for one whole academic year.
5. Men at work aren't so bad, though, if they're helping us appreciate the earth we live on instead of erecting concrete and brick at light speed. The class of 2004's Topiary Testudo was a fantastic idea, even if it took a long time to finally appear. The class of 1994 also had a great idea. According to university libraries, they originally raised "funds for the construction of a garden behind McKeldin Library to feature flowers and plants indigenous to the state of Maryland." However, "the 1994 class gift was redirected in 2003 to support the construction of the Jim Henson Statue and Memorial Garden in front of the Stamp Student Union."
Hold on - it took 9 years to get the ball rolling on putting in a garden, then somebody decided they didn't want to do it anymore? And then the funds went somewhere else? I guess this year's seniors don't have to worry if they don't like the lounge idea. The class of 1996 put up money for a fountain at the west gate traffic circle, but I don't know that any such fountain exists.
6. If you really can't come up with any good ideas, you could just put up a plaque in the Student Union listing all the previous senior class gifts. Be sure to include yourselves and leave room for future classes. This one's only good once, though; the future years' seniors can't carve "Gave the money to carve our gift into 2009's plaque" into 2009's plaque.
7. Are enough college students reading? Books, that is. Why not continue the tradition of the classes of 1923, 1929, 1935, 1940, 1948, 1962, 1963 and 1991 and give money to the library? Get some of Amazon.com's bestsellers and stick them in the front of the library to draw students away from the lure of the computers.
8. Art Attack 2010: Paul McCartney.

Daniel Marcin is a senior economics and mathematics major. He can be reached at dmarcin@umd.edu.

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools