Most students were satisfied with the annual 200 Nights celebration for seniors, but some left the event upset after, among other incidents, Student Beach Resident Association Co-President Tim Harper ’03 made some questionable comments during a speech early in the evening.
At the beginning of the evening, SBRA officials spoke in front of the large crowd to thank everyone for the excellent turnout and good time.
Harper addressed the seniors in a short speech, and added, “Notice one thing, and one thing only…you may know some people or you may not, but I’ll tell you one thing…there’s no fucking losers here.”
Many students were outraged by Harper’s remark.
“I think it is an inappropriate comment for a student leader to make,” said Karen Donoghue ’03, FUSA President. “He should have thought twice before saying that. A lot of people were not there because of the money issue, not because of who they are.”
Other students agreed.
“I really enjoyed the event but I do think it was irresponsible of him because he is a representative of a whole organization,” said Nicole Sparling ’03, class of 2003 president.
“It was not the smartest thing to say at the time,” said Colette Landers ’03, SBRA co-president. “People who weren’t there wouldn’t understand. We had a lot of stress to plan the event. We didn’t even know if it was going to come together, and the comment was more of the ‘heat of the moment’ type.”
SBRA officials reported that Harper’s comment was not directed towards any particular students, nor was it meant to insult anyone. It was said in celebration of the event, according to SBRA officials.
Harper defended his comments when interviewed this week. “There were no fights, and the people there wouldn’t cause problems,” he said. “But I like to feed fuel to the fire. I love being an asshole. I knew everyone there, and they probably know me.”
Despite Harper’s assertion that no fights or problems occurred, an altercation between some male students erupted and a female student was injured after falling off of a band platform, according to Duane Melzer, coordinator of Off-Campus Students. This caused the event to end approximately 30 minutes earlier than planned. Melzer also said the female who fell off the platform required medical attention at Norwalk Hospital.
“There were people who I wanted to come to the event, and they didn’t come,” Landers said. “I missed their presence…and they are certainly not losers. We wanted everyone to come.”
Underage drinking was a factor at the event, too, and all attending seniors received bracelets, without question from SBRA.
“We just assumed everyone was 21,” said Harper. “No IDs were checked.”
“Bracelets were handed out to students who paid for the event,” Melzer said. “This did not mean that the student was 21.”
Melzer was unsure of how underage students were eventually identified, but he did report that ID checking was ultimately the responsibility of Stamford Marriott employees.
“IDs were checked by bartenders randomly,” said Lynne Copola, catering sales manager at Stamford Marriott. Copola would not further comment about other complications during the night, including complaints of vomit and broken glass on the dance floor.
“There was a lot of broken glass on the dance floor,” said Gina Dell’Aquila ’03. “Drinks slip out of hands. I don’t think anyone was intentionally breaking glass.”
Copola also reported that she was unaware of the underage drinking that took place.
The Office of the Dean of Students has reported that future 200 Nights events will be organized by SBRA only, and the university will no longer take part in any of its future planning.
“This decision was not made based on events that took place last Friday. It turned into too large of a production for planning,” Melzer said. “SBRA will still be given the $25 standard program fund for each beach resident to be used for non-alcoholic events [i.e. the money can be used for food, but not alcohol].”
“We would like to work with SBRA and plan future events,” Donoghue said. “You’re a senior no matter where you are.”
Charlotte Facella, director of marketing at Stamford Marriott, declined to comment on the event.
“We make no comments about groups,” Facella said sternly. “That is our policy.”
Despite the controversy, many students were still pleased with the event.
“It could have not been run any better,” said James Cahill ’03. “It was something every senior will remember for the rest of their lives.”
“I had a great time,” said Becky Hilliker ’03. “I liked the band. The whole evening was fun.”
Despite the controversy surrounding his remarks, Harper remained upbeat about the event. “It went awesome,” Harper said. “The price was justified. People would have paid double.”
In total, six buses toted a whopping total of approximately 300 students to the Stamford Marriott, according to Harper.
The event included unlimited food access, with two buffets, and four bar stations, with bottled beer and red and white wine served in glasses. Greg Zacholl ’02 served as the DJ, taking requests, until 10 p.m., and a band concluded the remainder of the evening at 11:30.
After collecting close to $25,000 or more, Harper reported that all extra funds from the event would be used towards future events for all seniors.
While many Fairfield seniors were recovering from the excitable 200 Nights last Friday, other seniors were preparing for another night of fun at Senior Celebration, a FUSA sponsored event held at the Skybox Café in downtown Fairfield last Saturday.
“Because a lot of the senior class came to us complaining, the only option we had, if we’re a good student government, is to offer an alternative,” said Donoghue. “If there’s a problem, let’s fix it.”
The event was first called “Senior Smash,” but due to the indirect association with an event promoting alcohol consumption, the university requested that the event be changed to “Senior Celebration.”
FUSA reported to sell 100 tickets, (approximately 60 percent of the total were on-campus students) at $40 each, which included 20 last minute walk-ins. Two forms of identification were required, and guests were allowed with proper identification.
Transportation, which was paid for by FUSA, from Lantern Point and campus left for the Skybox at 8:45 p.m., where senior DJ Dave McGovern ’03 and an open bar and food, with wings, potato skins and chicken tenders, awaited the seniors.
“It was a big success. People want to have it every month,” Donoghue added. “It was a great alternative. We weren’t trying to steal 200 Nights.”
“Both FUSA and SBRA were trying to offer two options,” said Eddie Seavers ’03, Class of 2003 VP. “One was semi-formal, and one was more casual. People who wanted two different things had their needs met. We had no intention of putting people against each other.”
According to Seavers, students stayed and danced even after the open bar had ended. The buses were only contracted until 12 a.m., so eventually all students who rode on the bus were out of the bar by 12:30 a.m.
“People kept asking us when the next one like this will be,” Sparling said. “Everyone was having a great time. It was great, and it didn’t get out of control.”
Many students agreed.
“Senior Celebration was a lot of fun,” said Amelia Hayden ’03. “It was a nice change from the Grape, and it was a small enough group to have fun with friends. ”
“It was really fun,” Emily Sweet ’03 said. “No one had to worry about how to get home, and I just didn’t feel like spending a lot of money.”
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