In his introduction to kick off the meeting, co-president Will Slocum ’99 raised concern that the recent all-mailbox distribution of campus magazines was wasteful. Will also hopes that the finance committee will henceforth ensure that magazines are printed wherever is cheapest rather than strictly at local printing houses. Will noted Dean Murphy’s concern about binge drinking and asked Council members to solicit ideas on how to curb extreme consumption. He also mentioned that the Dean’s Office is considering setting up an informal arrangement with the surrounding colleges to give students access to events on other nearby campuses.

Max Weinstein ’00 from the Committee on Educational Policy reported that the faculty will be asked next Wednesday to approve the committee’s recommendation that teams be allowed to go to national tournaments during exams. Max anticipates the motion will pass but not without a discussion of the general effect of athletics on academic commitment. The CEP is also considering adding lab components to some courses in the form of weekly community-service outings.

Sheraz Choudhary ’00 from the Committee on Academic Computing has been working on making the ethernet jacks in the library more visible. He also has been coordinating an effort to get a laser printer in Baxter.

Danielle Tarantolo ’01 of the Dining Services Committee mentioned that the dining-hall surveys will be tabulated and the results distributed soon. Co-president Kate Ervin ’99 asked for better fruit, and Carrie Ryan ’00 requested deli meat for dinner. Eric Soskin ’99 asked for better coffee: too expensive, says Dining Services. Dave Walfish ’00 put in a plug for more thorough theme dinners at the Drisk. But Eric, having suffered from starvation for variety in the past, doesn’t think regular theme dinners are a good idea.

Clare Murphy ’01 of the Library Committee mentioned that students might be able to take films back to their rooms soon. There will also be a new classroom/computer lab in the library. Matt Bryson ’99 complained that the $25 late fee for returning floppy disks to the library was excessive, many orders of magnitude more than the worth of the disk. Erin Troy ’01 asked that the science library be open all night or at least late so that students don’t get booted out as they currently do at Sawyer.

Amish Shah ’00 gave the first of an ongoing series of monthly reports on the activities of the Minority Coalition (Minco). Amish explained how Minco works as an umbrella organization for minority groups and coordinates theme months to raise awareness of minority issues throughout the year. Minco is changing its constitution — specifically its mission statement and its funding structure. Also, Minco is preparing for the celebration of the tenth anniversary of the multicultural center. The meetings are at 7:00 on Monday nights, and everyone is welcome to participate in the discussion of evaluating the Minco mission statement. Bert Leatherman ’00 was hopeful that Minco would engage a broad cross-section of the Williams community as it talks through its mission statement as a first step to building dialogue between minority groups and the campus at-large.

Perry Hanson, the director of information technology on campus, presented some of the challenges currently facing his office. One of the overriding themes is the reconciliation of students’ and professors’ levels of comfort with technology in teaching. Amish Shah ’00 praised the effort to have faculty adopt technology in teaching. Julian Fang ’01 pointed out that some STCs don’t seem able to give much help and that one’s problem gets buried in the "challenges" database. Mr. Hanson responded that Jesup’s commitment to supporting multiple platforms contributes to what he coined the "support crisis." Bert Leatherman ’00 suggested instituting a formal mechanism for providing evaluation of help provided by STCs as is currently done in the math-science resource center (Ugh - memories of that place!) Danielle Tarantolo ’01 suggested that some STCs be stationed upstairs where the computers are, but Mr. Hanson pointed out that the budget won’t allow increased hiring. Former STC John Finkbeiner ’00 bemoaned the possibility of resurrecting the unfashionable STC jackets when Danielle said the STCs walking through the upstairs labs are inconspicuous. John suggested having a chat line for students to type live messages to STCs. Dave Walfish ’00 and Jan Postma ’99 hope the printers, especially the one in Jesup 204, will be more reliable soon. Mr. Hanson pointed out that there’s a new printer upstairs in Jesup. Liz Lee ’01 asked where students could buy computer accessories now that Jesup doesn’t sell anything. Mr. Hanson suggested calling 1-800-whatever. Eric Soskin ’99 asked Mr. Hanson to promote e-mail submission of papers among profs. David Walfish ’00 and Bert Leatherman ’00 expressed concern that the password software on the Macs in the basement interferes with downloading files and is generally pesky.

Liz Lee ’01 announced the opinions sent to the College Council over the past week. One student, having spelling trouble because of shivering fingers, complained about people exiting Baxter lounge through the side doors. Another student would like access to Stetson lounge, but that is real estate that the faculty fiercely values.

Ami Parekh ’01 had good news that a free shuttle service will start at 7:00 Friday evening with trips to be to the mall and Stop ‘n Shop. Check your mail for the shuttle schedule and the other destinations. The service will only be open to Williams students. Mike Black ’01 is the manager of the shuttle service.

Julian Fang ’01 expressed concern that the resource room in Goodrich, for which only student-group leaders have keys, is being used by club leaders not for group activities but as a plush study space. But this shouldn’t be too widespread a problem because, according to Carrie Ryan ’00, "Getting a key is a veritable pain in the #%@!" Credit this solution to the sly, elusive locksmith at B&G.

Will Slocum ’99 announced that Fitch North will be upperclass housing next year since there will be fewer freshmen in an effort to alleviate the impending housing crunch. Unfortunately, Fitch North will probably contain mostly doubles. Some small co-ops might be added over the summer to help provide more space. Also, next year’s sophomores will have the option of designating a common room in Mission as a bedroom if their has one more person than the suite normally holds. Nacho Stiefler ‘00 hopes that the administration will focus on trimming back the size of the student body in the coming years rather than continuing piecemeal measures to facilitate an overcrowded campus. Julian Fang ’01 agreed that general living conditions are going downhill for upperclass students as a result of the campus crowding problem.

Lloyd Nimetz ’01 and Owen Boger ’01 opened a long-term discussion on Spring Street changes. Council members suggested a 24-hour diner, a convenience store, a video store, and stores that stay open longer. Council will continue this discussion and will review progress on other long-term goals like class-size reduction, meal-plan reform, and NESCAC regulation changes. Also, Council next week will look at the recommendation of the Committee on Undergraduate Life that Williams establish a substance-free dorm.

Bert Leatherman ’00 — CC Sercretary