Loker Committee Mulls Long Hours

The Loker Commons Advisory Committee met Thursday in Memorial Hall to discuss concerns about the new student center, including the scrolling message board, the LED screen at the back of the Commons and the possibility of lengthening Loker's hours.

In an e-mail summary to the Undergraduate Council, Rudd W. Coffey '97, the council's representative on the committee, wrote that the group's administrative members were "very concerned about the bad press and bad feelings" surrounding the electronic displays.

The message board was originally designed to carry student-written poetry and announcements, but few people have submitted either, Coffey said. He added that the "big question...is who decides if student art submitted on the LED board is appropriate."

To resolve this concern, a decision on any controversial submissions will be made by four committee members: Harry R. Lewis '68, dean of the College; Eric C. Engel, director of the Memorial Hall/Lowell Complex; Myra A. Mayman, director of the Office of the Arts; and James E. Lenhart '99, who will provide a student perspective.

Although many students looked forward to watching their favorite prime-time programs in Loker, television will not be available in the foreseeable future--at least not on the LED board.

Citing the board's lack of speakers and cable connection, as well as the potential problem of noise, the committee has decided against television in the Commons for now, Coffey wrote.

The committee also discussed extending Loker's hours, according to Coffey, and although Loker currently shuts down at 1 a.m., both students and administrators support a later closing.

Coffey wrote that Lewis said he "would like nothing more than to keep Loker open later as a safe alcohol-free hang-out spot, especially on the weekends."

But without shuttle service available in the later hours, at a cost which Lewis has deemed prohibitively expensive at this point, the dean will not permit Loker to remain open after 1 a.m., Coffey wrote.

The committee also speculated that use of the Commons will decrease once students have spent their Crimson Cash, the $100 credit- ed to every undergraduate's ID card for use at campus eating establishments. "They are going to wait until the Cash dries up before they try out new hours," Lenhart said.

The committee decided to keep restrictions against upperclass students eating in Annenberg Hall, although Quad residents continue to complain they have nowhere to eat after attending classes in the Yard.

Since the number of first-years eating at Annenberg Hall is significantly greater than the number who dined at the Union, Harvard Dining Services (HDS) is leery of opening Annenberg's doors to all students.

The anti-interhouse policy will remain until HDS has had time to "work the kinks out," Lenhart said.

Ann Elisabeth Stuart '97, a student-at-large member of the committee, said, "I think the meeting was really productive.... [The administration] is very interested in making sure that Loker Commons is successful."

But Coffey said that while the meeting was worthwhile, the committee was not moving as quickly as he would like.

"They had answers to most of my requests, [but] on most of the bigger things, there was kind of a wait-and-see attitude," he said

The committee decided to keep restrictions against upperclass students eating in Annenberg Hall, although Quad residents continue to complain they have nowhere to eat after attending classes in the Yard.

Since the number of first-years eating at Annenberg Hall is significantly greater than the number who dined at the Union, Harvard Dining Services (HDS) is leery of opening Annenberg's doors to all students.

The anti-interhouse policy will remain until HDS has had time to "work the kinks out," Lenhart said.

Ann Elisabeth Stuart '97, a student-at-large member of the committee, said, "I think the meeting was really productive.... [The administration] is very interested in making sure that Loker Commons is successful."

But Coffey said that while the meeting was worthwhile, the committee was not moving as quickly as he would like.

"They had answers to most of my requests, [but] on most of the bigger things, there was kind of a wait-and-see attitude," he said