Vaina stressed his point by wearing a brightly colored beanie while he addressed the council, which he said was worn by the Yale council president at an I.C. meeting.

The Harvard council was not alone in criticizing the I.C.'s effectiveness, according to Vaina.

"Princeton and Brown are working on the same thing," he said.

The council voted to send a letter to the I.C. requesting significant reforms within the year. Members discussed petitioning for veto power over the group.

But some council members proposed an immediate withdrawal from the organization.

"Every minute that we're a part of this, we're lending our name to something silly," said Robert B. Wolinsky '97, a council representative. "The word 'farce' has been used many times."

Representative Steven J. Mitby '99 also opposed further attempts to reform the I.C.

"It's like marrying an alcoholic and hoping to reform him," he said.

The proposal to withdraw met opposition.

"When we don't necessarily agree with what they're passing, the solution is not to say, 'Screw you, we're leaving,'" O'Mary said. "If we are 'the best student government,' then we should be the ones taking the lead."

Zingher, who attended an I.C. meeting last year, said she thought the organization had some merit.

"I actually really did come back thinking...I [had] learned a lot," she said. "I really think that the [Ivy] Council does have potential.