In an effort to improve attendance at the Assembly Series, Student Union hopes that changes in the selection process for Assembly Series speakers will make this weekly event more popular.
According to Barbara Rea, director of major events and special projects, increased publicity efforts will likely make students more aware of speakers they would already be interested in seeing. This year, 700 students have signed up to receive Assembly Series updates.
“Our biggest challenge is not a lack of student interest or time,” said Rea. “It’s student awareness.It’s been more of a matter of publicity and PR than trying to bring in interesting speakers. Students, I think, are sophisticated enough to understand that these speakers are worthwhile.”
The spring 2006 Assembly Series kicks off today with author, professor and civil rights expert Lani Guinier.
Other speakers this semester include Eugenie Scott, who will speak about the controversy surrounding evolution and creationism; Stephanie Coontz, whose research discredits society’s idyllic view of marriage; and Morgan Spurlock, a filmmaker best known for his documentary “Super Size Me.”
Although pop-culture figures like Spurlock, who will speak on March 29, might be the most familiar to students, popularity is not the only factor that goes into selecting who will speak.
“A speaker has to meet other criteria, not just popularity,” said Rea. “There are a lot of people who are popular but not necessarily distinguished. [Spurlock] is distinguished – his first Indie documentary earned an Oscar nomination. We try to look at people who are emerging, and Spurlock is going to be doing some great things.”
Bringing lesser-known speakers to campus, according to Rea, exposes students to new ideas.
“[The Assembly Series] is a unique opportunity,” said Rea. “We try to select speakers that you can’t otherwise see on T.V….I get a lot of comments from alumni who say they kick themselves for not catching some of these speakers while they were here. Others remember that those were the events that got them intellectually stimulated.”
Senior Jennie Cohen, who transferred from Bowdoin College, reported that a similar lecture series at her former school was more popular among students than the Assembly Series is at Washington University.
“Most people I know don’t really go,” said Cohen. “I just don’t think it’s built into the Wash. U. culture. It’s not part of the student’s daily plan. I think it would be more popular if the speakers were more relevant or interesting to students.”
For junior Hubert Cheung, having better-known speakers might increase student interest in Assembly Series speakers.
“I think the assembly series needs more high profile speakers,” said Cheung. “The only [lecture] I was interested in attending was the one by the creator of ‘Family Guy.'”
For the Student Union (SU) Treasury, the potential popularity of a speaker is an important factor in the allocation of funds, said Speaker of the Treasury Harsh Agarwal. A lump sum of $50,000 is given to the Assembly Series committee for planning purposes, and the rest of the funding comes from the appeals fund.
“We review [potential speakers] on a case-by-case basis,” said Agarwal. “We take factors like potential attendance, how well-known the speaker is, other events taking place on campus at the time, and the [speaker’s] target group into account.”
This method of funding differs from past years, when groups were allocated funding when they requested it, according to Agarwal.
Next year, the SU Treasury plans to create a selection process by which groups hoping to co-sponsor a speaker will be pre-approved based on their success in bringing well-received speakers to campus in the past.
“We want to create a sense of accountability for groups that are using money from the student activities fee,” said Agarwal.
While planning the lineup for each semester, the Assembly Series Committee reviews dozens of suggestions from student groups who hope to co-sponsor speakers of their choice and must often review over 100 names in one sitting.
“[Suggestions for] speakers come from all different places,” said Rea. “We’re constantly getting e-mails and calls with suggestions.The lineup that you see is the composite of numerous of sources converging.”
One of these sources, the Association of Black Students (ABS), will sponsor two speakers this semester: Cornel West, a prominent scholar and activist will kick off the University’s Black History Month events, and Earl “Butch” Graves, Jr., COO of “Black Enterprise Magazine,” will speak later in the semester.
“Cornel West is a dynamic individual,” said Michelle Jamison, programming co-chair for ABS. “He has so much to say and has had so much impact through his writing and jobs as speaker, activist, and professor that I feel many people could benefit from hearing him speak… [Graves] is another example of an amazing black male, and [ABS] wanted to bring out outstanding individuals in the black community.”
A member of the Text and Tradition program, which requires that participants in the program attend Assembly Series events, freshman Jewell Thomas looks forward the diverse speakers on the roster.
“It is important to have big voices in different fields come onto campus,” said Thomas. “It gives us something to associate with and look forward to every week. I think the literary voices are particularly beneficial, but that doesn’t mean other speakers can’t be inspirational or informative.
-With additional reporting by Mandy Silver