Senior gift should leave an impression
By Rashmi Joshi
Feb. 1, 2009 9:03 p.m.
We want to give something you can put a bow on. Or at least point to as an actual, concrete thing.
There are two main problems with the senior class “gift.” The first one is that there is no tangible “gift” that the students can unite under and get excited about giving. And the second is that we are so tightly wound up in ourselves that the Senior Class Giving Committee has to bribe us with free stuff in order to even make us think of donating any of our money to our own school.
I don’t know about you, but when I hear the phrase “senior class gift,” I think of giant telescopes, a statue or at least a flagpole. I think of one distinct present that the senior class would give to the school to mark our time here. However, our system lets seniors choose the various areas to which they can donate. So the gift is in fact just money that is funneled into different programs or departments.
“Seniors get to direct (their donation) wherever they choose. There are 67 areas they can pick from,” said Jayme Farrell-Ranker, the student leader of the Giving Committee and fourth-year communications studies and sociology student.
Well sure, great. I don’t hate the fact that Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science might be getting some extra money for computers or something, but it isn’t the same as leaving the school an actual gift from the class. It is really hard to get excited about donating to some little part of the school. Alumni do that ““ shouldn’t it be different for students? It is very difficult to feel united under 67 areas of interest. I want to be part of the class that gives the gym a giant trampoline or the class that adds new vans to the evening van service.
According to Farrell-Ranker, only 15 percent of the UCLA budget comes from the state, and with the current economic climate, these are hard days for our soon-to-be alma mater. I understand that money funneled to various areas will help, but how much will it actually benefit the school if we split up the senior gift into 67 pieces? For example, the UCLA Fund is encouraging every senior to give nine dollars in order to raise $81,639. Divide that by 67 and you get $1,218.49 to each area. Why spread our resources thin when we can pool them together to achieve something bigger and better? There is also the question of leaving behind something as a tangible sign of our existence on this campus. And this is easier to pin down when you have a giant trampoline to point at as you exit the university.
Farrell-Ranker said that the Fund often has to clear up a misunderstanding for seniors. “The gift is not a tangible thing. It is just a lot of money,” she said.
This is of course, assuming that we shell out any money at all. Living in the United States of Consumerism has somehow turned us deaf to calls of service. So, in order for us to donate, the Fund has to offer up free In-N-Out and discounts at Enzo’s and O’Hara’s at the altar of our need to consume, just so we might, maybe, possibly think of giving back to our school.
On free-In-N-Out day, I stood by the burger tables at the end of the event and watched seniors who were too late leave disappointed and burger-less. I talked to one of them.
Charles Lee, a fourth-year psychobiology student, didn’t make it on time for his burger. “I’m a senior but I didn’t get anything,” he said, probably echoing the thoughts of several disgruntled Bruins around him. When I asked him whether he planned to donate, Lee quickly found a loophole that afforded him worlds of access without any responsibility. He said, “Well, I’m not graduating this year so, no.” Sometimes even burgers aren’t enough.
Another student I attempted to interview would not even stay at the quad, once he learned that he had missed the opportunity for free patties embraced by cheese and pickles.
“Our goal isn’t money, it’s participation,” said Farrell-Ranker. “We want 50 percent of the students to participate. Last year 40 percent donated, and it was a new record. We have to have events (and discounts) to publicize. But we really try and educate people on why they should give back.”
Less than half the students donated last year, and it was a record? I really hope more people donate this time. Even if it isn’t something tangible, the money is still going toward things like scholarships, research and retaining faculty. We shouldn’t have to be lured in by two-dollar pints at Maloney’s to give back to the Bruin community. Without having the incentive of free beer or burgers to consume, apparently we can’t even think of parting with even small amounts of money.
I’m not saying I’m any different. I hadn’t really thought of the senior gift until I saw the red and yellow trucks on Tuesday surrounded by hungry crowds. Although, when I had given any sort of elementary thought to the subject, I always thought of it as a single and hopefully awesome senior gift. I still think it would be better for the class to pitch in and get UCLA a real present, possibly with a giant bow. Something like that would have more symbolic meaning to the departing seniors, and it could also be extremely useful to the university. I am sure we all have many ties to this school, but leaving behind a meaningful and tangible senior gift will only bond us more to our Bruin selves. Plus, for those of you on Student Alumni Association, it might make us more likely to donate when we’re all gloriously distinguished and offensively wealthy.
If you want to donate a giant trampoline, e-mail Joshi at [email protected]. Send general comments to [email protected].
