What a way to kick off 2009! Last week showcased an unforgettable start to what is sure to be a memorable year in Miami history. With the excitement of the Bicentennial Kick-Off Celebration still fresh in our soul and big band tunes from Charter Day Ball still stuck in our heads, we must now turn our attention to the true opportunity of our Bicentennial year -- planning for our future. At the heart of this is our commitment to designing, endowing and building the Bicentennial Student Center.

For 10 years, student leaders have been advocating for a true student focal point on campus: a student center. Last April, the board of trustees gave this vision life by approving the building's construction. The idea has been affirmed and the building will be built. We now have the opportunity to support this visionary undertaking.

Across the state and across the country, schools with which Miami competes for students, including Ohio University and Ohio State, have been building new student centers. These student centers not only meet the needs of current students, but also serve as the "welcome mats" for prospective students and provide a vibrant picture of the richness of the student experience. Our competitors have begun to build, yet Miami students had identified the need well before many of these schools began their construction. In order to remain competitive in attracting the best and brightest students, we need to support this student center.

Leadership and engagement are among the key attributes of the Miami student body. More than 70 percent of Miami students are involved in a student organization, yet there is only one designated meeting room managed by the Office of Student Activities for these groups. Student organizations which are lucky enough to have office space are spread out across campus, leading to segregated communities. The new student center will bring the majority of student organizations under the same roof. Through proximity, we will see a revolution in the nature of student interaction on this campus. Coalitions and collaboration through all demographics of Miami will be a natural phenomenon. The nasty problem of over-programming can be reduced as these new partnerships will allow for larger, campus-wide events and more efficient spending by student groups. In an increasingly interactive world, the new student center will also preserve the face-to-face interaction which is so valuable in creating opportunities for consensus solutions to the problems of the future.

While co-curricular activities have been a hallmark of the Miami Experience since classes began in Oxford, academics will always be the core of who we are and why we are here. The new student center will address the need for study space; a need that is apparent when walking through King Library on any given night. The tremendous success and popularity of King Cafe is an indication that the new student center, which will boast three times as much study space as King, will thrive with students looking to enhance their academic experience. As employers continue to demand graduates with developed skills in group work, the student center will provide meeting rooms and study spaces which lend themselves to the interactivity that most effectively compliments the lessons taught in the classroom.

Though the quality of our food services is consistently ranked amongst the best, the food venues themselves are inadequate for Miami's current student body. The current hub of the University, Shriver Center, does not allow students to eat at Haines Food Court during peak lunch hours, and there is little culinary incentive for off-campus students to stay on-campus for their meals. The new student center will offer themed food stations, providing a diverse selection of choices and allowing for the flexibility to change these themes over time.

The first week of the Bicentennial has been a reassuring display that Miami students are proud of this place and dedicated to her legacy. We must make it a priority to keep this level of school spirit and pride as we move forward into our third century. Fundamentally, athletics are the front porch of school spirit. It is the most natural, visible rallying point of a student body. The Bicentennial Student Center will provide a sports bar where everyone can come together to watch the RedHawks in action and where the walls themselves will be covered in our rich Miami athletic history and tradition.

The new student center will provide students with study space, student organization space, a coffee house, a cafe, a sports bar, a theater, food venues three times as large as Haines Food Court, group meeting rooms and so much more. More importantly, it will provide a true focal point for student life on campus. The student center will be at the crossroads of campus and will reconnect the academic hub with the hub of student activity.

These are uncertain financial times at best, but we cannot compromise a vision for excellence and a continuous call from the students to address this need. As we look to our Miami family to make the student center a financial reality, we must remember that the money needed to build this project will come from alumni donations and nowhere else. Now, with the energy and spirit of the Bicentennial permeating the air, we have the chance to reconnect with alumni who may never have been moved to donate before.

We are here because of the dedication and legacy of those who came before us. Now, as students, we must commit to leave our indelible mark on Miami's legacy. Just as we ask our alumni to support the construction of the Bicentennial Student Center, we as students must also take an active role in seeing the building through to completion.

During the 1909 Centennial Celebration, Miami alumni were inspired to take up the cause of raising enough for the construction of a library on campus. Through their dedication to a cause far greater than themselves, they raised the $70,000 needed to construct the building. After years of service as the Alumni Memorial Library, this building continues to serve students today as Alumni Hall. The legacy of the Miami spirit lives within each building on our campus. At this moment in our history, it is now our turn to take on the task of honoring Miami's history by building her future.

Love and Honor, Mike Scott Student Body President Heath Ingram Student Trustee Kerry McCormack Student Trustee