Rev. Scott R. Pilarz, S.J., the next university president, receives a Marquette shirt from Board of Trustees Chair Darren Jackson today. Photo by AJ Trela / anna.trela@marquette.edu

Marquette has its next university president — Rev. Scott R. Pilarz, S.J., president of the University of Scranton.

The board of trustees unanimously elected Pilarz at a special meeting today. Pilarz has served on the board since Sept. 2009.

Pilarz, 51, will succeed the retiring University President the Rev. Robert A. Wild next summer.

“This is a very humbling experience for me,” Pilarz told a crowd of administrators, students and local media in the Alumni Memorial Union today. “I have much that I need to hear from you: your hopes, your dreams, your aspirations for this amazing institution.”

Pilarz, Scranton’s president since 2003, said he was reluctant when first approached about Marquette’s presidency.

It was a “difficult moment” telling surprised Scranton officials he had accepted Marquette’s offer.

“I loved my years at Scranton,” said Pilarz, who has taught classes there while serving as president. “I made a lot of great friends there.”

But the more Pilarz talked with Marquette’s search committee, “the more attractive the possibility became.”

“It got to the (point) where I wouldn’t want to do anything else than serve as the 23rd president” of Marquette, Pilarz said.

Darren Jackson, chair of the board of trustees, acknowledged the odds were against Marquette finding a Jesuit to replace Wild. Current university bylaws require a Jesuit for the position.

“We’re ecstatic this was the outcome,” Jackson said.

Wild said he is pleased with the choice.

“I like everything I see (in Pilarz),” Wild said after the press conference. “He’ll be a great one.”

During the press conference, Jackson called Pilarz the most experienced incoming president in Marquette history. That drew a thumbs up and a smiling nod from Wild, prompting laughs from the crowd.

Before leading Scranton, Pilarz served six years on the English faculty and one year as interim university chaplain at Georgetown University.

Under Pilarz, Scranton has achieved record admissions and constructed a new campus center, sophomore residence hall and campus green space. A new residence hall and fitness center complex and an $83 million unified science center will be finished in fall 2011.

Pilarz said he wants to build Marquette’s academic reputation while also focusing on affordability and access.

“He’ll be able to build on what Father Wild started 15 years ago,” Jackson said after the press conference.

Jackson said the next year will allow Pilarz to meet with many stakeholders, trustees, students and others to build familiarity with Marquette.

Rev. Scott Pilarz press conference

Meghan Ladwing, junior in the College of Arts & Sciences, and running mate Joseph Ciccone, sophomore in the College of Arts & Sciences, square off against Emil Ovbiagele, sophomore in the College of Arts & Sciences, and running mate Ravi Gill, sophomore in the College of Arts & Sciences.

As students, there are many things we can’t control. Tuition, paper due dates and midterm exams can overshadow the fact that we chose to come here for a reason.

Yet one thing that is entirely within students’ power is selection of our representatives, the most recognizable office being that of Marquette Student Government president. But only 35 percent of the student body participated in the spring 2009 final election, according to MUSG documentation. With voter turnout so low, presidential hopefuls are encouraging students to make their voices heard and vote. This year’s decision could be the change that represents our wants and needs in more situations than we know.

Two running parties represent our decision this year: junior Meghan Ladwig and sophomore running mate Joseph Ciccone, both students in the College of Arts & Sciences, against Emil Ovbiagele and running mate Raviinder Gill, both sophomores in the College of Arts & Sciences.

Since only two pairs of candidates are running, there will be no primary election this year, but voters can submit write-in nominees on the ballot.

Students can vote in the final election online at http://musg.mu.edu/vote from 12:01 a.m. to 10 p.m. on March 25.

Meghan Ladwig and Joey Ciccone

Campaign Slogan: “Solving OUR issues.”

Why do you want to be MUSG president? What do you have to offer MUSG?

Ladwig: “I genuinely love Marquette University and believe that I have the leadership skills and experience necessary to be a leader of the student body, initiating improvements that will only make this university better for current and future students. I have been an active member of the MUSG Senate for five semesters, taking one semester away from Marquette to intern in Washington, D.C. I returned to Marquette with a drive to come back to the Senate and seek leadership of MUSG with the help of my friend and fellow senator, Joey Ciccone.”

What is the main focus or emphasis of your platform?

L: “We’re trying to cut (transition time) down to be as quickly moving as we can in getting things done. (We have) short term and long term plans for each (MUSG) committee, focusing on academics, student life, business and administration and student organizations.”

PLATFORM GOALS

Academics

• Posting of syllabi, major and minor requirements and class evaluations on department Web sites.
• Evaluation of the current advising practices within each college to target failures that have led to confusion in graduation requirements and study abroad opportunities, generating an overall feeling of distrust in the adviser-student relationship for many students on campus.

Transparency

• Creation of MUSG-SPAN in a collaborative effort with MUTV to display Senate meetings.
• Work with MUTV to put a podcast on the MUSG Web site.
• Poll students about issues through the MUSG Web site.
• Put the MUSG weekly agenda in the The Marquette Tribune.
• Post senators’ voting records on the MUSG Web site.

Student life

• Adoption of an alcohol amnesty policy that would allow students to seek help for an inebriated student without being punished for drinking.
• Creation of a student task force to work with administration on residence hall improvements, focused on a student wish list of functionality, sustainability and aesthetic improvements.
• Continuing current executive-board efforts to improve student wellness through renovation of the Rec Center.

Student organizations

• Creation of a diversity coalition that includes leadership of all organizations committed to specific issues of diversity to regularly discuss common ideas of tolerance and celebration.
• Continued support of student organizations through improvement of awareness of the Student Organizations Allocations process.

Business and administration

• Increase awareness and improvement of the commitment to the environmental sustainability of Marquette.

What makes your platform different from that of your opponent?

L: “I think that we really have a well-researched and planned out platform. We’ve talked to administrators about these issues for a few years now and really know the foundations and the basics and the facts about everything that we’re going with. We really just want to continue taking initiative now to hit those bigger issues in a leadership role.

“Short-term academic plans involving improvements to the department Web sites have all been discussed with the provost, vice provost, the Committee on Teaching and University Academic Senate, as well as numerous professors within each college. The development of a diversity coalition has been discussed in length with a diversity commissioner of MUSG as well as representation of many social awareness groups on campus.

“(I have) served on the (SOA) committee for two semesters.

“When discussing health and wellness here on campus, Joey made sure the MUSG recommendation called for a new Recreational Center here on campus. Furthermore, Joey sits on the Budget Committee, which brought to the Senate floor the $42,500 proposal to enact a sustainability survey which would look at how the university can make this idea come to fruition.”

How does your platform address the Sodexo and dining services issue?

Ciccone: “We don’t want to rush into anything. We want to make sure we keep this communication line strong and make sure that in the future, students will have somewhere where they can actually go to enjoy and eat.”

How do you plan to get students involved in the election/get them excited about your plans?

L: “So much time and effort has been put into this campaign during the past year that Joey and I are excited to finally be able to spend this month talking about our platform and leadership styles with students. Our excitement is reflected in all those that have committed to helping us get elected and in the student body that will vote on March 25. We are keeping our campaign lively with spontaneous ideas such as having the ‘Jump Around Guy’s’ wife wear our T-shirt at the (Notre Dame) basketball game (last) weekend, and we promise more surprises in the weeks to come.”

What do you want voters to remember most about your campaign?

L: “This has been a campaign that we’ve been planning for a long time. We’ve thought about (students) the entire process through. Nothing on our platform is going to serve as a launching pad to get us in a position to be president and vice president just for our own sake.”

C: “We want this to be the cleanest campaign possible. … We’re not going to do anything dirty. And even if we are elected, we’re not going to go into hiding.”

Emil Ovbiagele and Ravi Gill

Campaign slogan: “Transformation in the right direction.”

Why do you want to be MUSG president? What do you have to offer MUSG?

Ovbiagele: “It’s a need and an urge to transform MUSG into a more effective organization and an urge to want to take MUSG where it’s at right now to where it’s supposed to be. … It is mind-boggling that we still have people asking questions like, ‘What is MUSG? What does MUSG do?’ … If students still don’t know what their leadership body does, that should be a sign that the organization is not doing as much as it is supposed to be.”

What is the main focus or emphasis of your platform?

O: “It’s changing the current structure of MUSG from the legislative body to the executive body. I can tell you that the internal bureaucracies and small politics are the main reasons why MUSG does not function as it ought to function. And so, we would encourage an environment where independent and rational thought would rule over conformity, small politics, and bickering. … Secondly, we want to be the bold voice of the students. … We want to be advocates for students because our major priority is on the interest of students and not on the interest of the administration.”

PLATFORM GOALS

Academics

• Encourage midterm evaluations so professors can receive feedback from students and implement changes before the end of the semester.
• Work with administrators to create an anonymous Web site where students could enter concerns to their professors at any point in the semester.

Transparency

• Enforce an open-door policy where anyone is welcome to come speak with the president or vice president, anytime the officials are in the office.
• Assign a representative member of MUSG to attend at least two meetings for every student organization.
• Create an interactive Web site where every piece of legislation and idea can be tracked from the moment it’s presented by a senator to the time of completion.
• Emphasize welcoming students to Senate meetings to raise awareness of MUSG.
• Publicize student organization allocations in terms of how much was requested and how much was given for each organization via the Web site.
• Enforce the out-of-office hours every member of MUSG is required to hold elsewhere on campus, but not all do.

Student life

• Expand access to sexually transmitted disease testing and STD awareness on campus eliminating the “passivity” of the university on issues of sex.
• Adopt an alcohol amnesty policy.
• Collaborate with the Department of Public Safety in an effort to extend LIMO routes to Valley Fields.
• Develop the off-campus housing Web site to include a rating system so students could rate houses and buildings on campus, encouraging landlords to make their buildings safer.
• Work with DPS to install more cameras and blue light phones on campus.

Diversity

• Work with the Office of International Education to sponsor events that promote culture/diversity on campus and promote respectful dialogue on issues of race and the LBGTQ community.
• Create a policy whereby MUSG would support all diversity initiatives in terms of funds, support and publicity.

Green Initiatives

• Advocate greater use of the D2L Web site, the promotion of trayless dining and the encouragement of extensive education for dormitory residents on recycling.
• Encourage more recycling bins on campus.
• Work with professors to expand online submission of papers.

What makes your platform different from that of your opponent?

O: “It’s the fact that we’re ready to tackle the hard issues — the very hard ones. Expanding STD access and testing and fathering alcohol amnesty are not easy issues at a Catholic university. Currently, if you live in the dorms and your roommate is in need of medical assistance due to excessive drinking and you call DPS, after your roommate recuperates, you both get written up. This … has led to students not calling in such situations. That is very dangerous, and my fear is that Marquette might not actually realize the implications of such policies until someone loses their life.”

How does your platform address the Sodexo and dining services issue?

O: “I’m on the Student Life committee as a senator, and we’ve been working a lot with Sodexo. … We’re back to the negotiation table again. The way the current administration has left it, it would be a little too radical to upturn the whole process and come up with fresh ideas. … By the middle of fall semester, if there aren’t any changes to the current situation, we would move for more drastic measures.”

How do you plan to get students involved in the election/ get them excited about your plans?

O: “We have utilized the social networking Web sites. We’ve gone out on the streets with our cameras, asking students what they want. We’ve been going to different organizations trying to get them to vote. Everybody I meet, I tell them ‘Vote,’ because we believe nothing moves people more than the traditional way of word of mouth.”

Gill: “What we can ask of students is to have their voice heard, to vote on March 25 and be a part of this election so they can hold us accountable for what gets done this year.”

What do you want voters to remember most about your campaign?

O: “We want voters to remember that we’re a ticket that’s not scared of tackling the hard issues. … We’re candidates that will not marginalize their voices. We’re candidates that wouldn’t settle for anything less than the best for them.”

Audio: Clip of Jeff Engel’s interview with Meghan Ladwig and Joey Ciccone

Audio: Clip of Jennie Jorgensen’s interview with Emil Ovbiagele and Ravi Gill

University President the Rev. Robert A. Wild officially announced his intention to retire next year during his "State of the University" address in the Weasler Auditorium Thursday afternoon.

Thursday’s “State of the University” forum celebrated Marquette’s current strengths and promising future, but was overshadowed by news of University President the Rev. Robert A. Wild’s plans to retire June 30, 2011, or whenever a successor takes office, whichever is later.

Wild addressed a packed Weasler Auditorium, saying Marquette has great momentum moving into the future, making now a good time for transition.

“The timing of one’s retirement is always an enigma, but to me it comes down to the simple fact that the time is right,” he said. “I wouldn’t be leaving if great leadership wasn’t already around.”

“My successor will be inheriting a fine university and remarkable group of people,” Wild said, referring to Marquette’s faculty and staff, whom he praised during his speech.

Wild said he wanted to share this news in person at today’s address, but word spread quickly and the announcement was pushed forward.

He shared his “top 10” plans for his remaining time.

Wild indicated serious commitments to “raising boatloads of scholarship dollars,” continuing to increase undergraduate applications and completing the funding of the College of Engineering’s Discovery Learning Center.

Watching the basketball team in this year’s NCAA Tournament, being honored as “Season Ticket Holder of the Game,” and purchasing a state official Marquette license plate inscribed “WILD4MU,” were also on his list.

Wild said his time at Marquette has been an “experience beyond measure,” and there have many great moments in his 15 years.

As president, he built on established plans that were already in place, but he said he’s particularly proud of his accomplishments in fundraising and the creation of the Ethnic Alumni Association.

“I’m still around for the next 15 months,” he reminded the crowd.

The Board of Trustees will seek a Jesuit to fill his position.

Wild said his retirement plans were made known early to “give the board time for a thorough and thoughtful search.”

He entered and exited stage to standing ovations. Provost John Pauly said the thunderous applause showed the admiration people have for the work Wild has done.

“It was a day for celebrating and acknowledging his contribution,” Pauly said after Wild’s speech.

Senior Vice President Gregory Kliebhan shared Pauly’s sentiments, saying that working closely with Wild throughout his career has been a pleasure.

“I’m sad, but fully understanding of his desire to retire,” Kleibhan said.

Wild said his future plans are largely undetermined, but he intends to take to a sabbatical and continue with his pursuit of the Jesuit mission.

“We Jesuits do not suffer from an unemployment problem,” he joked.

Highlights of the “State of the University,” forum included:

• Marquette’s Krueger Childcare Center will move from its current location on 17th Street to 500 N. 19th St. Wild said the building is a great improvement over the current facility and additional renovations will ensure it is a top-notch day care service for Marquette’s families.
• A record number 19,600 applications have been received for next year’s freshman class.
• The $25 million in annual faculty research funding is a new record for Marquette.
• “Marquette is financially sound and stable,” Wild said.
  • The university’s 2010 budget will break even.
  • $7 million in additional financial aid will be made available for families in need.
  • Small raises will be given to faculty and staff.
  • The Discovery Learning Complex has close to $40 million in cash funds, allowing for the first phase to move forward. A groundbreaking ceremony on the southwest corner of 16th Street and Wisconsin Avenue is scheduled for Friday at 11 a.m. Wild and Engineering Dean Stan Jaskolski are expected to speak.

Jeff Engel contributed to this report.

Audio: University President the Rev. Robert A. Wild discusses his upcoming retirement during Thursday’s “State of the University” address.

Audio: Wild reflects on his time as president.

Audio: In response to an audience question, Wild addresses a few key highlights while at the helm of the university.

Milwaukee's image task force takes on the city's identity crisis.

Think Milwaukee. What comes to mind? A cold mug of frothy Miller? Historic music venues? The winged art museum? Anthropomorphic sausage?

Or are you unsure?

That’s what VISIT Milwaukee, a tourism promotion organization, discovered in a report two years ago — people don’t know what to think about Milwaukee

As a member of the Common Council’s Community and Economic Development Committee, 13th District Alderman Terry Witkowski’s work often revolves around attracting new businesses to Milwaukee.

In the course of his work, he’s found people outside the city who had no concept of Milwaukee.

He’s even run into people who thought Milwaukee is in Minnesota.

“It’s hard to draw conventions and tourism to the city when you don’t know what the city has,” he said.

It’s for this reason that Witkowski has taken charge in the Common Council to establish a task force that will discuss how to project Milwaukee to the outside world.

Approved Feb. 9, the new board will consist of 24 members, including city and county officials and representatives from other economic development groups such as the Greater Milwaukee Committee and the Milwaukee Seven, Witkowski said. Members hope to hold the first board meeting within the next month, he said.

On the surface, the task force’s job is simple: determine a new civic identity for Milwaukee and create excitement among tourists and businesses considering Milwaukee as a destination.

“We need to have a reputation to enter the global economy,” Witkowski said.
For years, that reputation has revolved around “beer, brats, custard, fish fries and (the television show) Happy Days,” said Dave Fantle, vice president of public relations for VISIT Milwaukee.

And while there’s nothing wrong with that, Milwaukee also developed the character of a hard-working manufacturing town, not unlike Detroit or Cleveland, according to John Gurda, a local author and historian.

Audio: Alderman Terry Witkowski discusses the Milwaukee image task force with the Tribune’s Chris Placek.

Old Milwaukee: More than just beer
Milwaukee’s highest point of prominence came in the middle of the 20th century and had been building to that point since 1893. It was then that the Milwaukee-based Pabst Brewing Company won the beer competition at Chicago’s World’s Fair.

At this point, Milwaukee affirmed itself as “beer capital of the world,” Gurda said.
The city began earning this label following decades of German immigrants brewing their own beer in the 1800s, said Steve Byers, an assistant professor of journalism former beer industry reporter for the Milwaukee Journal. Eventually, these brewers began expanding and selling their products throughout the Midwest, which led to national recognition of Milwaukee’s brewing prowess, he said.

Brewers such as Pabst, Schlitz, Blatz and Miller continued to grow and employ thousands of Milwaukeeans through the 1950s, he said.

The beer industry was an important piece of Milwaukee’s economic puzzle, but other manufacturing industries played equally important roles in shaping Milwaukee during the 1900s, Gurda said.

“Milwaukee didn’t have a blue-collar reputation — it was reality,” he said.

Heavy manufacturing companies such as water heater manufacturer A. O. Smith, mining equipment producer Bucyrus, motorcycle builder Harley-Davidson, and many others employed about 56 percent of adult males in the city during the 1950s, Gurda said.

Milwaukee’s penchant for blue-collar work attracted more manufacturers and workers to the city and provided Milwaukee with national recognition as a major urban center, Gurda said.

This role as an urban center was further established when the Boston Braves moved to Milwaukee in 1953, he said. Led by future Hall-of-Famers Henry Aaron, Warren Spahn and Eddie Mathews, the Braves beat the mighty New York Yankees in the 1957 World Series.

The combination of a burgeoning manufacturing economy and the “unbridled joy” of World Series victory launched civic pride to new heights, Gurda said. In 1960, Milwaukee recorded its peak population of 741,324. In 2006, the census bureau estimated Milwaukee’s population at 573,358.
Milwaukee’s rise to prominence was impressive, but it wasn’t to last.

Urban areas across the country began thinning out as people began migrating to the suburbs. As more people left, manufacturing jobs also left for warmer Sun Belt climates, Gurda said. The beloved Braves acted as a microcosm of this exodus — they fled to Atlanta for the 1966 season and have been there ever since.

Even the breweries struggled.

Milwaukeeans began to have mixed feelings about living in the “beer capital of the world” because the breweries still used technology from the mid-1800s, Byers said.

“It created an image of oldness that stuck with Milwaukee for a long time,” Byers said.
Consolidation in the industry also began in the late 1950s as larger brewers began absorbing smaller ones, he said. Blatz became a Pabst brand in 1959 and Detroit brewer Stroh’s acquired the Schlitz name in 1982.

During the 1970s, Pabst ran into financial problems, which eventually led to the Milwaukee brewery’s closure in 1996. St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch also expanded its production in the 1970s, which hurt Milwaukee’s beer industry, Byers said.

The city that claimed Pabst, Schlitz, Blatz and several other smaller breweries as its own found itself out of brewing assets. Milwaukee was back at square one, as the factories that the city hitched its proverbial wagon to all left town.

“It was not a good time,” Byers said.

New Milwaukee: Redressing its old style
Now, Milwaukee is working through a transition from former manufacturing giant to a viable member of the modern global economy.

“I like to say Milwaukee’s going from ‘Brew City’ to ‘New City,’” Fantle said.

Figuring out what to do with abandoned factories, neighborhoods and otherwise barren land in the inner city has been one of the struggles for Milwaukee during its current transition.

Redevelopment efforts at the Pabst brewery and in the Park East area, which include upscale condominiums, restaurants and movie theaters, are steps in the right direction, Gurda said.

“If people are expecting a Rust Belt city, they certainly don’t see that,” Witkowski said.
Visitors to Milwaukee are often surprised to see what the city has to offer, he said.

Much of Milwaukee’s attraction emanates from downtown, the East Side and the Third Ward. The Milwaukee Repertory Theater, the Pabst Theater, the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and the Milwaukee Art Museum overlooking Lake Michigan all provide a rich fine arts experience in the city, Gurda said.

“The art museum is symbolic of Milwaukee … like St. Louis’s arch or the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco,” Fantle said.

The museum is just one reason why the shore of Lake Michigan is important to Milwaukee.
“The city is showcasing the lakefront more proactively now than ever,” Fantle said.

Economically, the lake attracts businesses that use large quantities of water and water technology companies. The lake also allows for unique biological educational opportunities at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, which plans to offer a graduate program in freshwater sciences, he said.

The Summerfest grounds, Veteran’s Park and Bradford Beach also provide prime leisure opportunities at the lakefront, he said.

Other outdoor attractions include the Wisconsin State Fair, the Milwaukee County Zoo and the rest of the county parks system, Fantle said.

“Milwaukee’s almost hyperactive during the summer months,” Gurda said.

The summer festivals were a key reason an August 2008 issue of Marie Claire magazine rated Milwaukee the sexiest city in America, beating out cities like Miami, New Orleans and Beijing.
The restaurant and nightlife scenes have also been growing in recent years, Gurda said.

These amenities have led more people to live in downtown apartments and condos. Prior to the economic downturn, Gurda said Milwaukee was adding approximately 500 downtown housing units per year.

Another important part of rebranding the city is introducing visitors to the new Milwaukee by drawing them in with its older allure, Fantle said. The two-year old Harley-Davidson museum, for example, represents a modern retelling of Milwaukee’s manufacturing tradition.

“People come to soak in the beer heritage, but leave surprised by the new city,” Fantle said.
Although many visitors are pleasantly surprised by Milwaukee, the task force must still work creatively to get the message out with only a small marketing budget.

This is why VISIT Milwaukee focuses on bringing conventions and business meetings to the city to generate word-of-mouth advertising, Fantle said.

Milwaukee leaders want to get the message out about the city’s transition.

Developing and delivering that message is the ultimate goal of the new task force, but since the group has yet to meet, they have a long way to go. Witkowski and Fantle are both hopeful positive steps will be taken towards manufacturing a new image for Milwaukee.

“We want everyone to believe in our destination,” Fantle said.

Last year, MUSG brought Guster to the Varsity Theatre on April 30. This year, MUSG has made some changes to how they chose the act and where the concert will be hosted.

Coordinating 65 events throughout the course of one school year, Marquette Student Government certainly knows how to draw a crowd.

This semester, MUSG expects to draw its largest crowd yet. As 1,000 concert tickets become available on March 1, MUSG is preparing to fill the Monaghan Ballroom in the Alumni Memorial Union to capacity to welcome a highly anticipated artist.

What will that crowd be thinking when Girl Talk, aka Gregg Gillis, floods the ballrooms with the sounds of his mash-up pop mixes on April 20? Probably not about the agents, contracts, budgets, venues, tickets and advertisements that have been in the works since last year.

Finding the talent

MUSG Program Vice President Erin Shawgo, a junior in the College of Arts & Sciences, said Concert Commissioners Edson Juarez and David Bosch have wanted to bring Girl Talk to Marquette since last spring.

“We’ve never had a mash-up artist before,” Shawgo said. “We thought this new genre would be popular with students.”

Juarez, a senior in the College of Communication, said he and Bosch wanted to find a unique artist that would have campus-wide appeal. Girl Talk seemed to fit that mold.

“It’s pretty much all about pleasing the students and getting someone they want to see,” Juarez said.

Shawgo said securing the right artist also depends on what students are currently listening to, which performers other campuses are bringing in and the artist’s availability.

Prior to 2007, MUSG provided programming surveys to students to gain more insight into which artist they wanted.

Recently, MUSG has tried a different approach to receiving student feedback.

“Since the process started earlier this year, we were able to bypass the surveys and do our own research, asking our own friends and people we didn’t know in our classes with all types of majors,” said Bosch, a senior in the College of Arts & Sciences.

MUSG began negotiating for Girl Talk in August.

“We really didn’t have or need backups this year because the planning started so early,” Shawgo said.

Bang for their buck

The program board started trying to book Girl Talk before they even knew if he would fit their $45,000 budget.

Part of the $30 Student Activity Fee students pay with tuition covers the entire concert and publicity. The ticket price offsets the initial cost.

This year’s budget will allow tickets to sell for $15 each.

In past years, the MUSG Program Board has had a larger concert budget allotted for two concerts — one in the fall and one in the spring. This way, a $60,000 budget could be split equally for two “smaller” bands.

Since sponsoring two smaller concerts meant bringing smaller-name groups to Marquette, MUSG saw less interest in the concerts. This made it difficult to meet revenue lines, which led MUSG to the decision of hosting only one larger concert.

Shawgo said last year’s Guster concert at the Varsity Theatre confirmed their decision to cut it to one, at least for the following year.

“We chose a spring show because we thought it would be a nice way to culminate the semester,” Shawgo said.

But other changes are coming to concerts at Marquette.

This year, members of the program board decided to switch from the usual venue of the Varsity to the AMU ballrooms. Shawgo said the Varsity is a perfect venue for student music groups like band and choir, but not necessarily for a college concert.

“It’s a beautiful and newly renovated building that we don’t want to damage,” Shawgo said. “Also, the ballrooms are a much more open setting and can fit more people looking to move around.”

Bosch said they wanted a bigger space that would feel more like a concert venue. He added that Girl Talk’s “dance party” music style had a lot to do with the decision.

The ‘big time’

The artist a college chooses to bring to campus not only depends on student preferences, but also on how much the university is willing to spend.

The MUSG Concert Commissioners used the price estimates provided by Concert Ideas, a concert booking Web site that caters to college students with little concert planning experience. The site served as a reference to gauge which artists fell within their budget. Both Girl Talk and Guster are listed in the $25,000-$35,000 price range.

But some colleges have the budget to bring big names to campus.

Loyola University Chicago allots twice the funds to their concert budget as Marquette.

Matt Gebhardt, graduate assistant for Loyola’s student government Department of Programming, said Loyola’s big show in the fall, featuring Flo Rida with DJ Lil Boy and Hollywood Holt, dried up the majority of its $80,000 concert budget.

Gebhardt said part of Loyola’s $29,850 undergraduate tuition goes toward the Student Activity Fee. Flo Rida attracted 1,250 students at a $5 ticket price.

In recent years, Loyola’s Department of Programming has presented Lifehouse, Third Eye Blind, Cartel and Carbon Leaf, Plain White T’s, Michelle Branch and Black Eyed Peas.

For other campuses, such as Central Michigan University, the venue itself attracts big names.

Dave Breed, President of the CMU Program Board, said tickets are usually free to all 34,168 students for smaller-name concerts. The budget comes out of a portion of the $16,000 to $18,000 tuition that goes into the “Campus Program Fund,” he said.

“Only when we have the biggest shows do we charge for tickets. So I think students really respond to that well,” Breed said.

When CMU brought rappers T-Pain and Lil Mama to their Rose Arena in 2007, the 5,000 capacity building was full. Breed said the performance cost the program board $45,000, allowing them to charge $20 for the VIP section, $17 for general admission and $14 for floor seats. They were able to make their entire budget back.

“We have an easy time bringing in pretty big name people. Our organization has been around for 80 years,” he said. “Rose Arena is recognized as a good venue, so artists are pretty willing to come out here even though we’re pretty much in the middle of the cornfields.”

With such a nationally known organization, CMU has brought such artists as Ozzy Osbourne, ZZ Top, Aerosmith, Dave Matthews Band, Yellowcard, Lonestar and Eve 6 to its campus.

While Girl Talk may not seem comparable to bands like Aerosmith and Dave Matthews Band, the artist’s original musical combinations make him appealing to college students.

Dave Stevens, the Midwest representative for Concert Ideas, served as a middleman between MUSG and Girl Talk’s agent. Stevens said Girl Talk has a close-following crowd, especially after the underground release of the artist’s mashups.

College campuses attract artists like Girl Talk because students are the audience buying his records and seeing his shows, Stevens said.

“College kids are the ones that are searching the Web to find that stuff, so his music appeals to them the most,” Stevens said.