Late Registration

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit to campus is one of the most highly anticipated events in Columbia's history. Unfortunately, many students who were interested in attending the leader's speech were locked out of registration before they even heard that he was coming. University officials never sent a University-wide e-mail alerting students to the new event. Instead only a handful of student leaders received advance warning. The New York Times, Bwog, and Spectator reported on it soon thereafter. Within one hour, all the slots had filled up, leaving anyone who didn't have advance notice out in the cold. For future events of this magnitude, the University should announce the event in advance to the entire community and provide a lottery registration so that as diverse a group of students as possible may attend.

While the live broadcasts across campus will certainly provide outlets for students to participate in the event in real time, watching a video feed is not the same as the chance to see a president speak firsthand. Columbia should have made the information about the event public to all students before opening registration so as to provide a fair opportunity for anyone to sign up. What's more, the event's organizers should have instituted a lottery so as to tone down its perceived exclusivity.

In the future, the University must remember that open communication is essential. General Studies and Barnard students did not receive notification of the speech until well after the announcement, and Columbia College and SEAS students are still waiting for an official e-mail. When events have serious implications for everyone at Columbia, the University should notify all students at once. Next time Columbia hosts a major speaker, it owes all students a fair chance at participation.