By Eric Preisler
Staff Writer
TCNJ Chess Club, TCNJ Musical Theater, College Union Board and Chabad were all funded for events, while Lamda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority’s event was tabled at this week’s Student Finance Board meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 31.
Lamda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority’s event, “The Latinx Experience in the Age of Trump and the Alt Right,” which would be held on Feb. 22 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Education Building Room 115, was tabled after SFB requested that the sorority provide more research about the speakers listed and that the organization look into inviting other speakers.
Dr. Rebecca Martinez from the University of Missouri and Dr. Romina Pacheco from Fairfield University were invited to speak about the Latinx experience following the election of President Donald Trump. Latinx is a gender-neutral term for the words Latino and Latina.
“They will be talking about their experiences but also their research in their fields of study, bringing in their publications about the Latino experiences on college campuses,” said Thelma Carrera, a senior philosophy and Spanish double major and president of Lambda Theta Alpha.
The board’s request was made to encourage the sorority to show more initiative in planning the event, and to prevent the College’s academic departments organizing the event and choosing the speakers, since funds are intended for student use rather than department use, SFB explained.
Most of the funding for the event would come from the African American Studies Department, Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies department and the Women in Learning and Leadership program.
TCNJ Chess Club was fully funded $414 to compete in the World Amateur East tournament, which will be held from Feb. 17 to Feb. 19 at the Hilton in Parsippany, New Jersey.
Funding will include the tournament entry fee, a hotel room and gas.
World Amateur East is one of the few chess tournaments in which players do not compete solo, according to Andy Chen, president of TCNJ Chess Club and a junior mathematics major.
“This is one of the few events where it is four on four and you have to work in a team environment,” Chen said. “This is a really unique opportunity for our members.”
TMT was fully funded $3,300 for lighting equipment for its annual musical, “Spring Awakening,” which will be performed from March 28 to March 31 in the Kendall Main Stage Theater.
Lighting plays a critical role in the production of this show, members of TMT explained.
“This production is a very lighting and tech-intensive show” said Thomas Hudson, a senior communication studies major and a lighting designer for TMT. “(We) want to be able to evoke the moods using lighting equipment to help the audience deal with the major issues that are discussed in the show.”
After being tabled last week, CUB was fully funded $25,000 to hold an outdoor concert at Funival, which will be held on May 4 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. in Lot 6.
The concert component of Funival will create a positive and stress-free environment for students, according to the event’s proposal packet.
“Adding a live music component to Funival will provide the event with an energetic and enjoyable atmosphere that will undoubtedly enhance the recreational experience of attending the College’s end-of-the-year legacy event,” the proposal stated.
CUB took SFB’s advice, as members cut expenses and allocated more money from different parts of Funival’s budget, reducing the requested amount by $2,900.
Chabad was partially funded $4,408.27 and tabled for other requested funds for its Purim event, which will be held on March 1 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. the Education Building Room 212.
Funding includes the costs of a Jewish freestyle rap artist, traditional Purim cuisine and other supplies.
“We are trying to incorporate all of the different aspects of the holiday,” said Erica Levin, a junior biology major and president of Chabad.
Costs for a caricature artist, jester and balloon artist were tabled.
SFB advised Chabad to give a more descriptive itinerary of its event and to provide more justification for the tabled items.
This event is intended to be celebratory and educational, according to the event’s proposal packet.
“Often considered the most festive and joyous holiday on the calendar, it commemorates the miraculous survival of a persecuted people,” the proposal stated.
The carnival theme, caricature artist, jester and balloon man will represent aspects of royalty and the beauty pageant present in the story of Purim. According to Levin, planning for this event is different from previous years.
“For our past Purim events we have done very similar things and we are trying to really branch out,” Levin said. “We are trying to incorporate the story of Purim to have a more educational side to it this year, so everything we are doing does have an aspect that relates to the story of Purim and the holiday itself.”
