Newcomb's signs of spring
Spring is in the air and so is Newcomb Plaza's Big White Tent.
Rather than retreating into the gloom of the Alderman stacks, students can study or daydream beneath the shade of the tent while sitting at tables.
Donna Baker, assistant director for operations in Newcomb Hall, said Newcomb Hall officials usually try to have the tent up around Spring Break and take it down around Thanksgiving.
"When the weather is nice, there is a multitude of people out there eating or reading," Baker said.
The 40- by 60-foot tent, designed to withstand any weather short of a hurricane, made its first appearance in Newcomb Plaza in fall 1998.
When the University renovated Newcomb Hall in 1997, the plaza was designed specifically for a tent, with the slate serving as an outline for the tent's location, Baker explained.
However, after the renovation, there was no money left to purchase the tent itself.
The University-Wide Task Force on Alcohol Abuse finally funded the purchase of the tent in summer 1998 for an outdoor all-weather venue. The cost of putting up the tent was approximately $17,000.
"We get extremely mixed feedback about the tent," Baker said.
"Some think it's ugly and doesn't fit in with the Jeffersonian style of the University."
Others, however, start asking in January if the tent could go up sooner, or if it could stay up past November, she said. Big White Tent has hosted everything from the Sunset Concert Series to a summer orientation dinner and the fourth-year class reception.
In May, the tent and plaza will be one of the sites for graduation for the first time.
"I think it serves its purpose," Baker said of the tent.
Whether it is used for a group study session, lunch or a lazy spring nap, Big White Tent is a sure sign of the season.
-Julie Hofler
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