The Associated Student Government-sponsored Spring Break trip will still proceed despite the low number of students signed up, which some ASG members attributed to neglect by the organizer.
About 12 students have booked the vacation package after multiple deadline extensions, said Student Services Vice President Courtney Brunsfeld, who is responsible for organizing the Bahamas trip. Last year, about 160 students went on the trip to Cancun, Mexico, and about 200 went the year before.
Brunsfeld, a Weinberg junior, said she did all she could to publicize the trip and that student interest declined for various reasons.
But 1835 Hinman Sen. Michael Blake said she failed to make enlisting students a priority.
“She has said that she does not think this is something that should be handled by ASG,” said Blake, a Medill sophomore. “It’s pretty apparent that this was not a priority.”
But Brunsfeld said other issues, such as campus safety and student health services, took higher priority for a reason.
“I don’t know if it’s necessarily a bad thing that this is not our highest priority,” Brunsfeld said. “A lot of the priorities of my committee went to working on issues that affect a larger number of students now and in the future.”
Members of ASG’s executive board declined to comment on Brunsfeld’s performance.
To make sure students would like traveling to the Bahamas, Brunsfeld said she measured student opinion and traveled there in October, courtesy of Student Travel Services, the agency that booked the trip.
Previous Student Services Vice President Laura Ellis said she also took a free trip to familiarize herself with the destination with the stipulation that she would promote the location to students. Ellis said Brunsfeld’s decision to take the free trip and then make promotion a lower priority could be seen as improper.
“She has to justify that to herself,” said Ellis, a Weinberg senior. “It’s a tough call.”
But Brunsfeld attributed low student interest to post-Sept. 11 fears and a poor economy. Prices for the trip ranged from $789 to $1,109, compared to $639 to $1,069 last year.
“I think the publicity was comparable to last year,” she said. “But I think post-Sept. 11 travel stigma and the economy seem like the only plausible reasons.”
But Blake said Sept. 11 had little impact on students’ travel plans.
“I did not hear from one person (in my constituency) about fear of flying,” Blake said. “People are still going away for Spring Break.”
Weinberg senior April Lane, who went on the Cancun trip last year, said the cost of this year’s trip, as well as the destination, might have discouraged students.
“I saw ads in The Daily, but it just seemed more expensive,” said Lane, who will vacation on the East Coast this Spring Break. “Cancun’s also more of a party destination than the Bahamas.”
Blake said organizers should have known that the trip location would draw fewer students than previous trips to Mexico.
“I know for a fact that it was suggested not to go to the Bahamas,” Blake said. “Other locations have a better party scene.”
ASG Campus Public Relations Chairwoman Kate Duffy said she does not believe the decline in student interest in the trip represents a trend. If it does, however, ASG leaders should remember that next year, she said.
