Pratt Institute - Prattonia Yearbook (Brooklyn, NY)

Page 12 text:

THE STUDENT EXECUTIVE BOARD— Last April, ye olde Institute suddenly contracted a strange malady. A poster rash broke out on every floor, accompanied by feverish and bar- baric shouts and ravings, which threatened to dislocate several beams and cause permanent injury to a dozen or so loose bricks. When the temperature fell, the patient had a new outlook on student government; and physicians in attendance agreed that George had, indeed, done it. Since then, President George Wiesner and his fellow conspirators Bob Christenson (Vice-President) and Barbara Matura (Secretary-Treasurer ) have effectively governed Prattonians from the Brown House on Grand Avenue. Of what does this government consist, you ask? Perhaps a committee investigation will reveal some of its aspects. The Activities Committee, headed by Bob Catanero, checks on the status—healthy, declining or defunct—of the various clubs and organiza- tions at Pratt; and informs the S.E.B. of their problems and needs. Guided by Bert Fried, the Awards Committee attends to the discovery and com- mendation of those Seniors who have made outstanding contributions to the life of the Institute. The Finance Committee, lead by Ray Lawson, battles the inflation- ary spiral and invents bright answers for that perpetual question, “Where does our money go?” Some of the latter turns up in health service; an- other sum often puts clubs back in the black; and still another portion is spent in replacing furnishings which daily use and student acrobatics have demolished in the lounge and Men’s Club. The white-coated attend- ants in the lounge are also accounted for in this particular allotment. Contrary to rumor, they are neither psychiatric aides nor the result of coffee nerves. Al Amato and his Publications Committee are in charge of the student voice, as heard in the Prattler, Freshman Handbook, Prattonia, and other printed matter of Institute-wide importance. The Recreational Facilities Committee, headed by John Swass, chases stray ping-pong balls, opens the doors of the Men’s Club to the general public, and pushes unsuspecting students into the Pratt pool. Bob Anderson and the Social Committee provide the moving force behind such events as the Winter Festival, April Showers, the Hatchet Hop and assorted coffee clutches. Although interior designers have not yet begun work on the lounge and the Men’s Club and the Student Union is still part of a rather misty future, the ping-pong screen is a reality and so is a year of good gov- ernment.