USG proposes new Majors Fair to streamline freshman orientation

In addition to the open houses held by each department at the beginning of the school year, the USG will organize a large Majors Fair for incoming freshmen during orientation week next fall, USG president Bruce Easop '13 announced at Wednesday's USG Senate meeting.

Easop, who also co-leads a group with Associate Dean of Undergraduate Students Thomas Dunne that is revamping the freshman orientation process, said the objectives of both the USG and the committee was to “rethink orientation” by streamlining and reducing the "clutter" in the orientation schedule.

“We want to make sure we’re not stressing people out or overscheduling them,” Easop added.

He explained that incoming students would be better served by discussing broader academic questions about departments at the Majors Fair rather than the narrower concerns about prerequisites that are discussed at department open houses. Easop noted that departmental representatives and undergraduate representatives would be present at the Majors Fair, which is expected to be held in the New Frick Chemistry Laboratory atrium.

Departmental open houses will be held after the first day of class.

Easop explained that it may help freshmen if members of the USG could be identified as a resource at the fair. He asked the Senate whether there was interest in purchasing T-shirts that would clearly label members of the body that could guide freshmen with logistical or academic questions.

In a non-binding straw poll vote to gauge interest, 17 members of the Senate voted to have T-shirts, while one member voted against.

There was greater debate, though, about who should foot the bill: the USG or individual members. Despite a brief discussion about subsidizing the T-shirts, only three members of the Senate voted for the USG to finance the apparel in a similar straw poll vote. Eleven members voted against the proposal, while two abstained from voting.

Earlier in the meeting, USG campus and communities affairs chair Carmina Mancenon '14 briefed the Senate on the Communiversity festival held at the end of last month. Mancenon said more than 40,000 people attended the event, though she said that figure was partially an “eyeballed” approximation by the Arts Council of Princeton, which co-organized the event. Based on this figure, Mancenon said that the event only cost $0.13 per attendee.

In the future, Mancenon explained, the USG will look to tap into other sources of funding to finance the USG’s contribution to the event, including the College Community Fund. The USG also hoped to install a dunking booth at later fairs; Mancenon noted that Easop may be one of those to be dunked.

Senators from the Class of 2015 and the USG community service co-chairs also presented an evaluation of the USG’s April Month of Service. The project, which cost $210 in total, saw 1,709 hours logged in the USG’s system. The USG also said that Wilson College, having logged 416 community service hours, had won the Clash of the Colleges contest, a component of the broader Month of Service.

The USG discussed holding its next Month of Service in October in order to engage students in community service earlier in the school year.