Warm weather and sunny days often turn students' thoughts to spring weekend, and this year's activities will again include a major concert and an oozeball competition.

"We would like to build on the progress made during last year's spring weekend," says Vicky Triponey, vice chancellor for student affairs. "We hope students will celebrate responsibly. Safety and civility remain our primary goals."

The Student Union Board of Governors is aiming for a Saturday night or Sunday concert April 29 or 30 at Gampel Pavilion. Students may be allowed to purchase a non-student guest ticket priced substantially higher than the subsidized student tickets. The other official activity of the weekend is an oozeball tournament Saturday morning, April 29.

Although some students have asked to add activities to the weekend, Triponey says expanding the celebration is not in the best interests of the campus community. In addition, adding activities limits the University's ability to adequately ensure student safety, she says, adding that activities such as residence hall carnivals to spring weekend would send the wrong message to outsiders and would make the weekend more attractive to non-students.

Although last year's spring weekend celebration showed considerable improvement over previous years, there was still evidence of disturbing behavior, including excessive drinking, vandalism, and outsiders entering campus seeking trouble.

"Substantial change in student behavior does not happen overnight," Triponey says. "Last year we made a lot of progress and we would like to continue that momentum. We want to take a conservative approach to spring weekend to ensure that it can continue. We are working with students so that the events planned are safe and fun."

Spring weekend, a tradition that stretches back for decades, can be an outlet for students who have weathered a long New England winter and will soon face exams and the end of the school year, she says: "We think that students should enjoy the spring festivities and yet celebrate responsibly."

Karen A. Grava