Its coming is heralded with about as much fanfare as can be made on a campus as small as ours, with flyers hung, email announcements sent and even tables with baked treats and drinks laid out to advertise its arrival. Winter Carnival has long been a staple annual event at DU, one which has become recognized as an “essential” part of being a Pioneer. This weekend, as happens every year, the campus will empty as students head to the mountains for a weekend of relaxation, and of celebrating winter, Colorado and the Pioneer spirit. The event is, to many, the apex of the year. Yet it is a school tradition which leaves too many students behind, simply because they cannot afford the trip. Winter Carnival is a tradition which needs re-evaluation to truly be inclusive for all students who call themselves Pioneers.
Students often balk at the idea of choosing against attending Winter Carnival, a choice I have made for the three years I have been a DU student. It began as a choice made purely for financial reasons, but has since become my own private statement against what I see as a tradition founded in privilege. It is not cheap to attend Winter Carnival, and while I do not disparage the students with the financial means to go, there are some who are left on the empty campus because it is too expensive for them to afford a weekend away in the mountains.
This weekend away comes with quite the bill, even taking into account the discounts and special offers granted through the university. Looking at the discounted prices for lodging available on DU’s Winter Carnival page, the least expensive option available is a $135 per night option which can be split between two people, leaving each paying $67.50 each night. This is not an unreasonably high price, but $135 over the course of two nights can run steep for some students and that does not even account for the additional costs which come with the weekend.
Adding together the various costs Winter Carnival involves, including the cost of two days of lift tickets ($55 each), snow tubing ($7), a concert ticket ($5), the maximum two per person food vouchers ($5 each) and the costs of the charter bus ($10 one-way), most students are looking at a cost of approximately $110 dollars and are still left to pay for some additional meals and other basic expenses. Furthermore, some students may not have ski equipment, the rental of which can add another $40-60 with the discounts in place.
All together, a student can look at spending up to $300 or more to join their friends and classmates for the weekend. Of course, these cost breakdowns do not hold true for every student who will attend Winter Carnival, but it is aimed to highlight what a typical student, someone without a pass or equipment, might face when wanting to join their peers for the weekend on the mountain.
The university does generously offer scholarships to those who find themselves in a financial bind, this year about $10,000 worth, according to DU Programming Board. This is a wonderful offer to those students who may be feeling excluded, but of course enough scholarships cannot be offered to suit all of their needs. Students are left having only portions of their needs covered, scrambling to find a way to cover the additional costs left over.
But more problematic than this is the notion that a student must submit an application explaining why the money should be granted to them, how they have contributed to campus and show their school spirit to be given the money. It is not an excessively difficult procedure, but it is bothersome that students of more limited financial means should have to justify why they should be included in an event meant to honor the importance of being a part of this university and of being a Pioneer.
Winter Carnival is, according to many students and alumni, a highlight of a student’s career at DU, and something meant to be remembered for years. It is the university’s crux event and is presented as an “essential” part of being a Pioneer. If the university is truly committed to inclusive excellence, to allowing each student on campus to enjoy and honor the identity of being a Pioneer, Winter Carnival must be readjusted so all members of campus can attend, not only those who can afford it.
