As students prepare for W.I.L.D. this afternoon, there is sure to be more than one story about “how W.I.L.D. used to be.” We’ve all heard the stories about students bringing in couches and kegs by the dozens and enjoying the true spirit of Walk In Lay Down. But none of the current undergrads were there. At Student Life we understand the feeling that W.I.L.D. is not what it once was, but think that instead of dwelling on the past glories, students should work with Team 31 to ensure a concert that is fun and safe for everyone on campus.

What made W.I.L.D. so special in the past was that it was more than just a concert. It was a unique campus phenomenon.

How many campus concerts have their own Wikipedia page? The key to making Washington University’s students excited about the W.I.L.D. experience once again is distilling the event to its core and discovering modern and safe ways to incorporate those elements into the event.

The choice of music is what receives the most vocal complaints from the students. Many have shot down George Clinton as irrelevant and not a big enough name. While this argument essentially comes down to personal taste and a sense of musical history, the past gives us examples of amazing, and less than stellar, W.I.L.D. acts. For every show that teamed Outkast with Dispatch (spring 2000) there is one that featured Crazytown and Eve6 (spring 2001). In short, sometimes Team 31 hits a home run and sometimes they strike out when it comes to the music.

The answer is more focused student involvement. Not everyone will get the kind of music they want at W.I.L.D., but if they are able to more easily suggest acts and then see which acts were the most suggested and why Team 31 made their particular choice, students would be happier with, or at least more resigned to, the decision.

The couch aspect of W.I.L.D. is one that is quickly on the mend and Team 31 should be applauded for their efforts. The inflatable couches failed only in their numbers in the fall, and Team 31 has stepped up to the plate by buying more couches for the spring: 20 in fact, according to Student Union’s Web site. While this may not be nearly enough for everyone, the real root of this problem lies with clarity. According to Team 31′s policies on their Web site, students can still bring their own couches to the quad as long as they have pre-registered the couches one week in advance. Team 31 should do more to publicize the due date and encourage students to register couches by bringing registration to them. Set up a table on the South 40 or somewhere else on campus explaining the couch policy. Make a list of stores where couches can be obtained cheaply and make it available to students. This will take some initiative from the student body as well, but we should ease the transition for those who are unaware of the process.

The final essential element to W.I.L.D. is one that has dwindled recently (no, not beer), and while it still remains to an extent, Team 31 needs to bring it in by the truckload to create a magical experience for students (okay, maybe it is beer). In actuality, the last and most important element of W.I.L.D. is fun.

Firstly, Team 31 and students need to realize something: fun is not universally definable. For some it involves inflatable games and mechanical bulls and for some, quite frankly, it involves beer. What better way to get students of all ages on the quad early and keep them safe than to provide kegs of beer for those students who are of age and want it, and other activities for students who are not of age or don’t want it.

While there is no surefire way to completely subdue some students’ urge to binge drink before W.I.L.D., by making beer available from security personnel on the quad, it will make W.I.L.D. safer and more popular.

In the past, kegs floated around the quad unhindered. Institute the wristbands and ID checking that have made events like Bauhaus a success. The people manning the beer will be able to check up on the drinking students as they revisit the kegs. If there are cost restrictions, have everyone who wants to drink pay 5 or 10 dollars for a wristband. Students will be more than happy to pay if it will allow them to come to W.I.L.D. early instead of having to choose between the activities at W.I.L.D. or drinking at home.

Everyone needs to remember, W.I.L.D. isn’t about beer, as much as it isn’t about music. It’s about the campus coming together and having fun. Team 31 needs to focus on that fact and find ways to integrate all types of campus fun into the event.

Whether this means bringing back the picnics or movie screenings that defined W.I.L.D in its infancy, or finding new ways of involving students in the event, Team 31 needs to reevaluate what W.I.L.D. is about and how to make it special again. We aren’t there to hear the music. We are there to hear the music together.

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