Better House Life Though HoCos

To say that House Committees (HoCos) are the lifeblood of Harvard College’s social scene would not be far from the truth. Although other clubs and groups have events for their members, and although the Undergraduate Council (UC) throws an occasional campus-wide bash, HoCos are the one common denominator reverberating throughout the undergraduate social experience. Week in and week out, they provide countless opportunities for everything from partying to House bonding to forming friendships with housemates that one would never otherwise meet.

HoCos across campus share two common attributes. First, from an efficiency standpoint, a dollar spent on HoCo events will go farther to improve student life than nearly any other investment. And second, every HoCo at Harvard is in constant need of more funding. Although the UC has, of late, been as effective as it can be in addressing this second concern, it can’t provide the kind of funding that is really needed.

Special-interest organizations and clubs may have more of an impact than HoCos on individual students’ lives, but HoCos are unique in their ability to appeal to the student body as a whole while fostering a sense of small-group community and comradeship in individuals who have nothing more in common than the setting of their education. House Stein Clubs, House Intramural teams, HoCo-sponsored parties, and House formals are almost uniformly successful and are accomplished with an average operating budget of about $10,000 per HoCo per semester, much of which is spent on formals, which start at around $6,000. Better-funded HoCos would undoubtedly increase the quality and frequency of House events that are already widely attended, nurture House spirit, and improve the student body’s collective social life.

Currently, HoCos receive funding from a range of sources. Some rely on House dues, UC money, and special cash influxes from House Masters’ discretionary funds. Some can tap into giant trusts for the biggest events of the year. And some of the more entrepreneurial HoCos hold events to fund-raise. Reaffirmed by a new package passed by the UC last week, council funding plays a big role for many HoCos. Although the actual amount of the grant in this bill is the same from last year ($3500 per semester), it gives HoCos significantly greater flexibility in spending their money. Additionally, the new bill will set aside more of the HoCo money from the UC grants fund, meaning the UC will have more money to pay for its own campus-wide events.

The UC has its priorities in order, but its budget remains limited. HoCo spending already takes up nearly one quarter of the UC’s entire budget, so the council is unlikely to raise per semester HoCo grants for fear of hurting funding for other student groups. Similarly, after a glut of spending on student life improvements in the past year, it will be hard, at least in the short term, to convince the College or the President’s Office that HoCos are in fact some of the soundest ways to invest in student life on campus.

In the meantime, HoCos should be looking for innovative ways to raise funds. One surefire method would be to tap into alumni giving to Houses. Some HoCos already use trusts to pay for hugely expensive House events like the Lowell Bacchanalia. But as a general rule, HoCos are prohibited from administering capital campaigns, even though they could improve social life and make alums happy that their money is going straight to students.

In the future, the College and the President’s Office should look seriously at directly funding HoCos. It is easy for both to say that the UC has enough money to give to all student groups, including HoCos. But it is right to say that, with all the other initiatives the UC is leading, HoCos will never get the magnitude of funding they need. The Loker Pub, Lamont Cafe, and the renovations to Hilles that the President’s Office is paying for are good ways to improve student life as a whole. To enhance House life, however, HoCos are the key.