"The new people have provided new ideas and energy and manpower for old ideas," Hanselman says.
Among the projects new members are working on is a free comedy concert at the Science Center this Thursday.
But the influx of new members was insufficient to pass several of the constitutional reforms sponsored by the Movement to Reform the Undergraduate Council (MRUC). The reforms included a resolution considered Sunday to hold general council elections each semester instead of once a year.
"Most of the new members are eager for change," says Dudley House representative and veteran council member Richard A. Cole '95. "But each week MRUC proposes reforms, and they keep being shot down by a few votes."
A non-MRUC proposal to add a first-year representative to the council's executive board also failed.
First-Years
But Gregoire maintains that attendance has been highest among first-years, and most have remained enthusiastic about their work.
"The enthusiasm is still there [among first-years] and we're definitely getting things done," says council parliamentarian Elizabeth A. Haynes '98.
Even members who say they are frustrated with council procedures agree that some progress in being made.
"We've had a lot of enthusiasm and new ideas, which has been very positive," says Gregory M. Heestand '98.
First-years say they like committee and Freshman Caucus meetings most.
The caucus is planning a concentration fair and the Freshman Formal, and it helped organize Halloween trick-or-treating in the Yard.
"The Freshman Caucus is a lot more informal [than the general council]," Schmitt says. "In a half-hour meeting, we get as much done as in a three-hour council meeting."
A lack of political factions is the reason for the success of the caucus, Heestand says. He sees a trend that may be spreading to the council as a whole.
"I definitely see [the U.C.] as being less factioned this year," says Cole, who is serving his fourth term. "People are shifting back and forth rather than staying in voting blocks."
Hanselman says he agrees.
"We're not being sidetracked by the internal controversy," he says, "which has been a problem in the past.