With restructure and boost in funding, CAB aims for ‘showcase’ year

The Campus Activities Board is hoping a restructure of its organization, along with a boost in funding from the Student Government Association, will make this year a “showcase year.”

This semester, CAB went from having one vice president to having three vice presidents. Each vice president is in charge of a specific area of the organization, which includes marketing, membership and events.

Doug Wagner, adviser for the organization, said the new structure streamlines communication from the organization’s leaders to the “Cabbies” that help out with events and planning.

“The outgoing president last year and I sat down as we were starting to do our elections and felt it would be better to do a structure where (we) had a president and then have three different vice presidents and coordinators under those vice presidents,” he said.

Wagner compared the new structure to a triangle of information where there’s a “step-by-step process for information sharing.”

“There’s people designed at every level to make sure they’re catching all of that information and making sure things are planned efficiently and effectively,” he said.

So far the system seems to be working. Eric Roach, president of CAB, said information sharing has been easier since the system was implemented.

“It really kind of makes it easier to know who’s in charge of who and who’s reporting to who,” Roach said.

Senior Rachael Ruba, who is CAB’s vice president of events, said this year communication has improved within the organization.

“The restructuring was more so we could have open lines of communication and knowing who to report to and who to really look to for direction,” she said. “At times last year we felt a little lost but now we have a more cohesive unit.”

Boost in funding

CAB is one of the five largest student organizations on campus and is receiving $115,455 this year in GAF money, nearly $30,000 more than what it received last year.

The organization’s funding this year accounts for more than half of the $173,000 given to the top five largest organizations which include Dakota Days, Tiospaye, Dakotathon and SERVE.

Wagner said some of the additional funds will be put toward bringing a well-known music artist to campus in the spring. The rest will go to fund different events around campus, including musical comedians and educational speakers.

The main focus of the organization, though, will be on finding a concert that will draw large crowds.

“The litmus test for CAB every year is not the little things that happen, but our litmus test is usually that big concert, “ Wagner said.

Last year’s concert was Hoodie Allen, which took place in Aalfs Auditorium, and the 2014 concert saw Timeflies take the stage in the DakotaDome. Wagner said he’s hoping to have another concert in the Dome this year.

“My goal is that we do not have a show in Aalfs. I want us to be in the Dome because I think the Dome creates a better environment and atmosphere for a concert experience,” he said.

Roach said the executive board is going through eight pages of artists to select about 10 potential artists. Once this list is created, it will be distributed to students in a poll for the ultimate decision on who will perform in the spring.

“We want to bring whatever the students want to bring. Really it’s our job to listen to them and to bring what they want,” he said.

While this year isn’t a make-or-break year for CAB, Wagner said it will offer good experience to the organization and be a testing ground for its new structure.

“I think it’s going to be a really good showcase year,” he said.

(Photo: Hoodie Allen performs in Aalfs Auditorium April 13. The Campus Activities Board is looking to bring a “well-known” artist this year with help from a more than $29,000 boost in funding. File photo / The Volante)