In advance of Friday, when men’s basketball will face Creighton University in a historic Sweet 16 matchup in the NCAA men’s basketball March Madness tournament, the Undergraduate Student Government (USG) discussed and planned student programming for the game. The group ultimately decided to host a watch party event in Jadwin.
President Stephen Daniels ’24 said that given Princeton’s success, events would have an above-average student turnout.
“A lot of the spaces that we commonly put events in might not make as much sense,” he said. “Robertson can maybe only hold a couple hundred people and would probably not be the ideal venue for this.”
Dean Dunne, current USG advisor, and Dean Deas, who will soon be replacing Dean Dunne the next academic year, were both present and offered input at the meeting as USG is collaborating with the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students on this programming.
Treasurer Walker Penfield ’25, who was not present at the meeting, communicated with Daniels that allocation for the event could be similar to that typically reserved for the Bonfire, which traditionally occurs after Princeton football beats both Yale and Harvard. Last fall, USG proposed setting aside $10,000, which was never used since football lost to Yale.
Daniels considered “trying to send students to the game,” explaining that his estimates for “the cost … for travel, hotels, and tickets” would be around $20,000 per event. However, Daniels questioned whether the unallocated $60,000 in the USG budget should be used for this, explaining that alternative allocations could be used for more campus and community-based activities like Tigers in Town.
Social Chair Avi Attar ’25 said that the focus should be on reaching more students and generating “school spirit on campus,” allowing USG to save their budget and “provide a cushion in a sustainable way that doesn’t involve sending students to these events directly, as cool as that would be.” Ultimately, the group chose to focus on on-campus programming.
Dean Deas also asked students to consider whether they would prefer multiple small locations like TV lounges as opposed to a larger venue, “like … McCosh 50 or McCosh 10 where you could fit a few hundred students in there together.”
Students also debated the pros and cons of hosting a watch party at various locations like Frist Campus Center, Dillon Gym’s main floor, Jadwin, and Whig Hall.
U-Councilor Afzal Hussain ’25 focused on accessibility and explained that “when you have a very accessible place, I think that’s when you get people who are passing by, see what’s happening, and join in.” He added that only students committed to watching the event would go to Jadwin.
Attar, however, explained that the group should “book a space like Jadwin” in order to “make an event that’s new and different and that draws people out of the familiar spaces like Frist and their room that they’re used to.”
“That’s how we’re going to have the most impact for people and how we’re going to drive a sense of community and cohesion and school spirit,” Attar said.
Ultimately, the group voted to host the event in Jadwin and considered adding new features to programming like merchandise, face painting, temporary tattoos, noisemakers, or small giveaways.
During the meeting, the group also unanimously voted for Projects Board’s approval for various student programming. The African Students Association requested $2000 for a fashion show, one of their biggest events pre-COVID; Princeton Caribbean Connection requested $1500 to host their annual carnival; the Black Student Union requested $2000 to host a gala celebrating Black diasporic accomplishment on campus. The USG only votes on Projects Board’s approvals exceeding $1000.
Due to student travel, this meeting was held virtually. The USG meetings are held on Sundays from 4–5 p.m. at Robertson 001 and are open for all students to attend.
Nandini Krishnan is a Staff writer for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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