Campus Y sees internal change

Although the first nail has yet to be hammered in the renovation of the 97-year-old Campus Y facility, the group's leaders already have started constructing a brand new foundation.

The UNC Board of Trustees approved the final $1.3 million needed for the project in July - a key development that Campus Y Co-President Derwin Dubose said would not have happened without prior restructuring of the organization.

"Our system got us the building, and that's going to be kind of like our legacy," he said. "Before, there wasn't a mechanism for us to work with the Board of Trustees. ... There wasn't external slant and focus."

Officials say the metamorphosis marks the organization's most significant transition since the implementation of an umbrella committee setup during the early 1990s.

The Campus Y co-presidents, Dubose and Elizabeth Sonntag, now oversee separate realms. Dubose manages external affairs and finance, while Sonntag keys in on internal affairs.

As the largest student organization on campus, the Campus Y must model itself after a nonprofit organization, Dubose said.

"I don't consider us a student organization in a lot of respects. It's more, I think, a social movement, and we have been the largest social movement on campus, period, throughout the past 145 years," he said.

"The only way we can continue to do that is to take a more business-minded approach."

In keeping with that goal, officials recruited outside specialists to elevate areas they felt needed reform.

They brought in Anup Dashputre, a business major who created and implemented the Safe Ride program, as their point man for finance.

Now the group's sole treasurer, Dashputre provides increased accountability - a challenge under past multitreasurer systems.

After assessing financial records, Dashputre said he saw several committees shelling out money for similar activities and suggested grouping committees with close goals.

"We have so many great ideas flying around the Y that sometimes finances might take a back seat," Dashputre said.

The Campus Y's 17 committees have been consolidated into four outreach groups: University, global, youth and local. The youth outreach group organized this week's Children's Rights Week events.

Patricia Cowley, membership coordinator, also was recruited, based on her expertise in attracting new members to her sorority.

Under her guidance, the Campus Y has ballooned in size and garnered a 38 percent increase in members since last year.

"We've gotten a more diverse group in the Y and kind of people from every facet on campus involved," she said.

The group now has nearly 1,800 members, and Dubose said officials expect to reach a total of 2,000 members by March.

But some of these alterations have been a difficult adjustment, especially for returning members.

"We're in that growing pains of making the system work," Dubose said. "Things are going really well, but implementing a new system is always difficult."

Virginia Carson, director of the Campus Y, said doling out responsibility is the most challenging task that the group's leaders face.

"This is one of the most valuable learning pieces of the Y: learning how to get a group mobilized and marching in the same direction."

During a recent 10-day leave of absence, Dubose said he was able to reaffirm his belief that the group is headed in the right direction.

Student Body President Matt Calabria, an ex-officio member of the BOT, said trustees have noted the professionalism displayed by Campus Y leadership.

Mirroring Calabria's office, the Campus Y will compile a document, similar to student government's October Report, for the first time this year. It will provide justification for changes and will outline progress made thus far.

While Dubose said people might forget the specifics of the group's accomplishments 20 years from now, members are proud of what they've achieved.

"Nobody really remembers all the work you put into it," he said. "But we know that we're helping future generations."

Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.