Three hundred UT seniors are heading to Channelside this Friday, April 13 to partake in the senior cruise. However, an estimated 500 other seniors will have to find their own getaway due to the limited capacity of the cruise.
“The cruise is limited to 300 students because that is the capacity that the Yacht Star Ship has imposed on us,” said Senior Congress Representatives Miranda Peterson and Cara Ponticelli in a statement to The Minaret. “This has been the capacity for the past two years, and it has never been reached or exceeded.”
This year, the attendance cap of 300 left many in the senior class upset because they didn’t believe the event was publicized enough.
“I’m upset because I have been looking forward to going,” said UT senior Lauren Papps. “My friends went last year. I have been checking online, the UT website, e-mails and looking for flyers for over a month for information on the cruise.”
“I heard about [it] right after it was all booked up,” said UT senior Leanna Leitnaker.
According to the Senior Congress Representatives, the cruise was announced at several student government meetings. They also say the details were put into the weekly student government announcements and were included in the weekly student activities global email.
“I heard about the actual trip from the senior congress in a Student Government (SG) meeting. The meeting was on a Tuesday and [they] said the sign-up sheet would be put out the following week in the Student Activities Office (SAO),” said UT senior Jessica McClellan. “Outside of the SG meeting, I only heard about it because I work in SAO.”
“I read about it in the SAO weekly email that goes out. I believe I read about it like the week before the sign-ups started,” said UT senior Jessica Josefczyk. “I thought I was informed pretty well. I read the emails that go out.”
The senior cruise sign up book filled up in about a week and half after being placed in SAO. It’s important to note that extra efforts were made to make sure that both May and December graduates knew they were able to attend the event.
“The first students to sign up probably spread the news by word of mouth,” the Senior Congress Representatives said in their statement.
While that statement rings with truth, by the time most students received the news by ‘word of mouth’ it was still, however, too late.
“I didn’t hear anything about it. I found out just three days ago from another senior who was buying a dress to go,” said UT senior Carla Dubis. “I think it should have been done for the seniors who graduate in May – like me – versus the [ones] who aren’t graduating until December.”
The Senior Boat Cruise is sponsored by SG from the fees that have been paid each semester; therefore, the trip is free of charge to the seniors. The students must use their own cash for the bar on the cruise.
“We are allocated a budget for the year and must find appropriate events and gifts that fit within that budget,” said the Senior Congress Representatives. “For this reason, it is not financially feasible to reserve another yacht to accommodate more students.”
Another event for the senior class is going to be held Saturday, April 14, at 7:00 p.m. on the ninth floor of the Vaughn Center, in the hopes of providing an alternative for those who were not able to attend the cruise.
The down side to this gesture is that there is only space for 200 seniors on the ninth floor. Complimentary appetizers and two drinks will be offered to everyone present. The seniors who were not given a chance to sign up for the senior cruise have first dibs on attending this event.
According to the Senior Congress Representatives, the students will have a chance to mingle with approximately 30 alumni, and can find out how to stay involved with UT after graduation.
The Senior Congress Representatives would like to see this event turned into a tradition.
As of now, the future of next year’s senior cruise is in the hands of next year’s SG representatives. Recommendations will also be available to next year’s senior congress to find other activities that will provide fun for the senior class as a whole.