2008 Woodie Awards
Committee supports Carnival break
Adam Dede
Issue date: 4/24/08 Section: News
The Calendar Committee has made a change to its recommendation to give a break from classes for the Spring Student Symposium in response to student objections to the original plan. As a result, the Winter Carnival will likely enjoy its traditional Friday without classes in the 2009-2010 academic year. Before the change back is made official, however, President of the College Ronald D. Liebowitz and his staff will have to accept the recommendation.
"I think that for all practical purposes they already have accepted the recommendation," said Secretary of the College John Emerson.
A recently released Student Government Association (SGA) proposal about the plan will further bolster the Calendar Committee's recommendation. The proposal, passed unanimously at the April 13 SGA Senate meeting, outlines the success of the 2008 Carnival, and argues that the Carnival is a major tradition of the College which sets Middlebury apart from other schools. The proposal also includes schedule suggestions to allow both the winter celebration and the symposium to receive breaks from class. Ending on a more sentimental note, however, the document returns to a quote from Kris Williams '11, who summed up the uniquely Middlebury feeling of Winter Carnival.
"This is one of those moments that just make me realize, Wow, I really made it! I'm here at Middlebury," said Williams at the Carnival's kick-off bonfire.
In an interview with The Campus, Emerson noted that the original recommendation to change the calendar had very little to do with Winter Carnival and was mainly aimed at increasing the role of the research symposium. He said that the Calendar Committee had seen the Friday morning of Carnival as a very inactive time with low attendance at the races. As such, it was thought that Friday classes would have little effect on the Carnival.
Emerson stressed that no one in the administration wanted to take away from the traditional activities of Carnival.
"Those recommendations had very little to do with Carnival weekend," said Emerson. "There was a feeling that very little was going on in the day time on Friday."
"I think that for all practical purposes they already have accepted the recommendation," said Secretary of the College John Emerson.
A recently released Student Government Association (SGA) proposal about the plan will further bolster the Calendar Committee's recommendation. The proposal, passed unanimously at the April 13 SGA Senate meeting, outlines the success of the 2008 Carnival, and argues that the Carnival is a major tradition of the College which sets Middlebury apart from other schools. The proposal also includes schedule suggestions to allow both the winter celebration and the symposium to receive breaks from class. Ending on a more sentimental note, however, the document returns to a quote from Kris Williams '11, who summed up the uniquely Middlebury feeling of Winter Carnival.
"This is one of those moments that just make me realize, Wow, I really made it! I'm here at Middlebury," said Williams at the Carnival's kick-off bonfire.
In an interview with The Campus, Emerson noted that the original recommendation to change the calendar had very little to do with Winter Carnival and was mainly aimed at increasing the role of the research symposium. He said that the Calendar Committee had seen the Friday morning of Carnival as a very inactive time with low attendance at the races. As such, it was thought that Friday classes would have little effect on the Carnival.
Emerson stressed that no one in the administration wanted to take away from the traditional activities of Carnival.
"Those recommendations had very little to do with Carnival weekend," said Emerson. "There was a feeling that very little was going on in the day time on Friday."
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