A sudden drop in ticket prices for the Haiti Relief Concert scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at the Alfred Lawson Jr. Multipurpose Teaching Center Gymnasium has caused speculation among students.
Originally, the student senate tailored ticket prices so that all proceeds would go directly to Haiti relief efforts in response to the devastating Jan. 12 earthquake.
Originally the promoter, District Seven, was not going to be paid for organizing the concert. However, the student senate renegotiated the deal to compensate District Seven with 19 percent of concert ticket sales since the promoter could not use pro bono work as a tax write off. This came after Florida A&M administrators recommended that the promoter be paid for its contribution toward making the concert a success.
Ticket prices were originally $22 for FAMU, Tallahassee Community College and Florida State students – even though the price advertised on the university’s Web site is $25. After further investigation, the $25 price mentioned on the university Web site is for online purchases through Ticketmaster. General public ticket prices are $33.
On Tuesday, the price for the concert tickets dropped to $20 and were set to go back to the original price of $22 one day before the concert. However, this special ticket price was not advertised. At first glance, this seems like a communications loophole.
“We have no control over ticket prices for the benefit concert,” said Regina Battle, manager of ticket operations at the Alfred Lawson, Jr. Multipurpose Teaching Gymnasium. “We just hear and follow what SGA wants our staff to do in regards to prices.”
It seems as if the benefit concert has become disorganized with the change in the dates, ticket prices and false advertising on the Web site.
This has not been the first time the Student Government Association has coordinated an event that seemed chaotic. The 2009 FAMU Homecoming Concert was another less than successful SGA venture.
Mismanagement of activity and service (A&S) fees money and lack of planning for student-funded events may cause SGA to lose their credibility with students. Be Out Day on Saturday may have also been an expensive disappointment.
The motive behind the concert was noble. However, when coordinating events, especially ones with a $120,000 price tag, precautions and organization should be a priority.