About a month ago, a volunteer delivered a copy of the Undergraduate Council's Harvard Census 2000 to the Greenough Hall room of Matthew S. Rozen '03.

Although Rozen filled out the form immediately, he still hasn't handed it in--and he's not alone.

With only 70 of the original 500 surveys in her hands, council President Fentrice D. Driskell '01 has been forced to scale back her once-lofty expectations for the census, a major plank in her campaign platform.

While she is still optimistic, Driskell says the council is now shooting to collect just 200 of the 500 survey forms--down from a goal of 250 just last week.

And with opponents saying that even 250 responses might not be enough to ensure statistical credibility, Driskell and council Vice President John A. Burton '01 have been forced into damage control mode--a familiar position for the duo.

Stumbling out of the Gate

Driskell and Burton had high hopes for their top campaign promise--conducting a survey to diagnose student concerns.

In the short term, they said, census results would be the council's key weapon in forcing administrators to take action on issues ranging from student space to Faculty diversity.