From the glamorous ladies to the dapper fellows, the annual AHANA Leadership Council (ALC) Boat Cruise started the year off right. A sellout crowd of 600 boarded the Spirit of Boston to cruise around the harbor for two hours, complete with food, friends, and dancing.
Busses boarded from McElroy Commons to transport students to the dock, where party-goers then got on board. The logistical coordination was something that leaders within the ALC had been planning for months. "My senior year really started on Sept. 20," said Akash Tharani, A&S '09, who is co-director of ALC programming with Eneida Miranda, A&S '09. "Over the summer, we spent a lot of time coordinating with the bus company, the boat company, and the administration. Things also had to be arranged with Robsham [for ticket sales] and the DJ to make sure everything ran smoothly."
Slight modifications were made this year with ticket sales. To make sure that the AHANA community was well-represented, tickets were reserved for the representative of each culture club to the AHANA Caucus, Tharani said. Each class was also well-represented proportionally, he said.
On board the multi-level boat, students could choose from a lively dance floor, outdoor decks, or seating areas. There were buffet-style appetizers and soft drinks available as well.
"The feedback from students has been really positive. Everyone seemed really happy with the outcome, especially the diversity of the group on the dance floor," Tharani said.
"People looking down from the top floor were pretty impressed with the mixed crowd, and it was a cool thing to see from up there."
"With it being senior year, it was great to go on the boat cruise and see how far we've come as a campus," said Courtney Caliendo, A&S '09. Being able to have fun and experience different surroundings was a highlight, she said, since other events like Homecoming are held on campus.
Young Moon, ALC co-president and A&S '09, said she was pleased with the event's turnout and the enthusiasm of those who attended. "The Boat Cruise has definitely gained popularity with the entire BC community," she said. "Hopefully we will continue to see great turnouts at our other educational and political events."
Students had to go through several "checkpoints" to make sure no one who was drunk boarded the boat, and while some had to be turned away before loading the bus, Tharani said there were no issues with loading or docking the boat.
While the attendance at the Boat Cruise shows the ALC's knack for planning entertainment and social events, leaders stressed that students should remember the group also puts on educational, cultural, and political events during the year. The ALC represents and promotes cultural diversity on campus through forums, lectures, performances, and unifying social events.
"The ALC is very well-known for its three big events [the boat cruise, the showdown, and the ball] but we do a lot with programming beyond that," Tharani said. "We hope that people who go to these social events also go to our educational and political events as well."
Moon echoed these sentiments. "A lot of people don't know that we actually have eight departments within the ALC," she said. "Our volunteer corps organizes a service trip taking place each year over winter break, for example. We also started a monthly volunteer service, which is new this year. We have the Women of Color Caucus, which focuses on the ways oppression converges along race and gender lines for AHANA women. [There is also] the Political Action and Education Department [which] focuses on AHANA issues on campus such as academics and University policies and topics that affect the greater community. This year, they will also be exploring how race plays a role in politics, especially with the upcoming election. Our goal is to push for all the other events to draw large, diverse audiences."
Students who attended the Boat Cruise can expect more programs - both the social and the educational - from the ALC. "AHANA groups on campus have great speakers in general," Tharani said. "The ALC brings the campus together politically, socially, culturally, and academically."
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