The Student Government Association (SGA) convened on Sept. 22 at 7 p.m. in Page Commons for its weekly meeting. As always, this meeting was open to the public.
The first order of business was bar night, which almost deserves to be capitalized (Bar Night) because of its proper noun status. The first bar night of the year (Thursday, Sept. 10) was hosted at Mainely Brews and featured a dramatically larger-than-expected crowd, many of whom were underage. The Sept. 10 bar night was cleared out with the help of the Waterville Police Department.
Major Joshua Woods of Waterville PD confirmed that the police were called by Mainely Brews staff members after too many people crowded into the building. Four officers responded to the call and helped the staff clear out the students in attendance. Major Woods also clarified that Waterville PD did not “raid” bar night. “Raid” is a term that is sometimes misused on campus, which has a specific meaning at Waterville PD.
“A raid involves taking control of the situation,” Major Woods said. That is not what occurred at the Sept. 10 bar night.
SGA has been drafting a response to address the overcrowding. The challenge was figuring out how to phrase the email.
A few SGA members proposed writing, “No underclassmen,” but Director of Student Engagement and Leadership Development Nathan Baird observed that this would be exclusive. So the phrasing was amended to, “Nobody under 21.”
“We heard that there had been some kind of debauchery downtown,” Aubrey Costello `27, co-president of SGA, said, “and we’re just reminding the student body to be respectful of the community.”
Costello has taken the lead on writing this email, which was sent out earlier this week (as of the Echo’s Thursday printing).
Keeping under-21 students away from bar night is a chronic problem. Fizz, the College’s anonymous social media platform, is awash with derogatory remarks about underclassmen attending the event most Thursdays.
Later in the meeting, Jacob Ittycheria `29, the SGA treasurer, delivered a slideshow presentation on the Student Life budget.
In years past, each class year (2027, 2028, etc.) would get a specific budget allocation, like clubs used to. But most class years didn’t spend their whole allotment, while others spent it and wanted more money. So the class budget system has been revised for 2026–27. Now, all class years share a pool of $10,500 for the purpose of putting on events.
How much money is there to go around for all clubs and class year events, etc., from SGA? The answer is $450,024; that’s SGA’s total budget. Of that, $231,000 goes to clubs (excluding club sports), with that pool further subdivided based on the category of club. The Echo, for example, falls into the media/publications category, which it shares with WMHB. The Echo confirmed these numbers with Ittycheria.
Finally, for those hoping to eat Mr. Tuna sushi on campus this year, the Echo advises lowering your expectations. When Beckett Stratton `29 asked if the College could bring the Mr. Tuna food truck to campus, Nathan Baird replied, “Keep dreaming,” and then explained that it cost at least $5,000 to get them to drive up to Mayflower Hill.
The Echo also advises clearing your schedules for Denim Derby, which will take place on Saturday, Oct. 17. SGA talked about Denim Derby planning near the end of their meeting.
~ Elias Kemp `27
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