Desperately seeking speakers for student events

When scheduled Class Day speaker Kofi Annan cancelled last year and the best replacement was David Gergen, ES '63, people weren't terribly happy. And this semester, the Yale Political Union (YPU) faced its first cancellation of a confirmed guest with less than a week of notice when Rudy Crew reneged. Inevitably, there were complaints that Yale's prestige fails to earn indelibility in prominent schedules. But such fiascos constitute just a small portion of the hundreds of guests who speak here every year at the behest of departments, Masters, or undergraduates. And getting them here is no trivial task.

SHAWN CHENG/YH

Certainly, the Yale name is a helpful start. "Many prominent speakers are eager to speak to a student body so well-versed on current events and so interested in changing society," Aaron Lemon-Strauss, PC '03, the YPU's vice president for guests, said.

Matthew Rothman, BR '00, president of the Yale College Student Union (YCSU), echoed this sentiment. "With the exception of George W. Bush, [DC '68,] who has expressed reservation to return to what he termed the `intellectual snobbery' at Yale, the Yale name has been a huge factor in how successful we have been," he said.

But for Liana Chang, SY '02, the role of Yale is incidental for this weekend's East Coast Asian Students Union (ECASU) conference, which she helped organize."The ECASU conference is not a `Yale' event in the normal sense," she said. "We are registered as an undergraduate organization, but that's about it." Although it uses Yale web space and alumni speakers, the conference itself will be held away from the Yale campus at the Omni New Haven hotel.

Like ECASU, the YPU and the YCSU host speakers who are alumni but say that the speakers are invited only because of their prominence. The YCSU, for example, brought Garry Trudeau, DC '70, and Fareed Zakaria, BK '86, to Yale. "It does, however, help us in drawing them to campus; it's an additional lever, if you will," Rothman said.

And the Yale name is certainly turning out to be no panacea. Just ask the people in charge of finding a speaker for Class Day. Shana Katz, PC '00, secretary of the senior class, said, "Things have been going very well so far," but the name of the speaker will not be announced until shortly before reading period.

"We work hard to get the best possible speaker, but it's a very idiosyncratic thing," Jenny Edwards, associate director for Yale College Classes, said. "A lot of these folks are booked way in advance, and it's a very busy time."

Amy F. Lin, CC '01, one of the organizers of Asian-Pacific-American month, even had problems bringing speakers to Yale because of its reputation. One grassroots speaker complained that she should have followed her first instincts and not come to such a non-activist school. However, Lin did not get mileage out of alumni connections, something the Class Day committee also does.

Neither the YCSU nor the YPU utilize alumni connections to get speakers. Lemon-Strauss explained that although the YPU's governing board features various famous alumni, "all decisions about which guests to invite and how to go about that are done by the executive board and the vice president for guests."

Both groups do take advantage of other Yale resources, though. The YPU uses Undergraduate Organization Funding Committee (UOFC) money, as well as member money, to pay for travel expenses, though, as per policy, it does not dispense honoraria.

But Rothman feels it would be nice if there were money for those speakers who request payment. "Yale could do a better job of funding student-organized groups that bring guest speakers," he said. "Many of the top speakers demand honoraria. Although I am against dispensing honoraria to guest speakers on principle, it is a reality that we must address if we want to bring some of the most sought-after people to address us."

Lin also thought that Yale could have provided more of the funding that she needed. But she added, "Generally, college Masters have been wonderful in their support."

Rothman similarly applauds the residential college Masters, who often hold teas in conjunction with speakers. "Masters are usually generous with their funds and with their time," Rothman said.

Lemon-Strauss also had kind words, even claiming that the Calhoun Master's Office made Larry Flynt's recent visit possible. "Many speakers find it extremely interesting to be able to not only address a large audience at the YPU but also a much more intimate one at a Master's Tea," he said.

Rothman, and Chang, and Lemon-Strauss   all feel that logistics fail to present any significant barrier to bringing speakers to New Haven, although Lin had problems with travel costs. "Due to the close proximity between Yale and New York, most guests' travel can be structured around a trip to New York and then an Amtrak ticket to New Haven," Lemon-Strauss said.

Lemon-Strauss is enthusiastic about working with these various other groups bringing speakers to Yale. He pointed out that the Liberal Party is working with this month's Opening Doors conference, and he said that his organization has even directed a speaker to the YCSU. "The YPU is extremely enthusiastic about different groups bringing political discussion to students at Yale. That is what we are all about," he said.

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