Hardly the social space of students' dreams,Loker is more commonly considered the a with fastfood. But given the administration's lack ofinterest in building a new student center, itseems as if Loker is all Harvard students canexpect.

Lewis said the size of Loker Commons is one ofthe roadblocks to making it more of a studentcenter.

"Loker is just not big enough, and that is noone's fault, since the size is determined by thefootprint of Memorial Hall," he said in an e-mailmessage.

Luck of the Draw

In the end though, Harvard students may justhave to count their blessings.

At least, that's what Yale students were sayingtwo years ago, when their request for anundergraduate student center went unanswered bythe administration.

As work on Yale's McDougal Graduate StudentCenter neared completion and Harvard, amid muchfanfare, opened Loker Commons, the Yale CollegeCouncil (YCC) prepared a plan that went above andbeyond Loker. It included office space for studentgroups, a grocery store, video rental and anewstand, as well as eateries and lounge space.

The Yale administration, however, decided notto fund the plan. In a response that has beenechoed in Harvard's administration, Yale said itsresidential colleges already serve as centers forstudent life.

But YCC Vice President Fawzi Jumean says theneed for a student center remains.

"In most cases, student organizations do nothave an office. Often students have to take theresponsibility and use their rooms," Jumean says.

According to Jumean, the YCC has repeatedlybrought the idea of a student center before theYale administration, only to receive negativeresponses based on lack of funds and space for anew building.

"Provided it's in a...central place on campus,a student center will be used by the students,"Jumean adds.

In the meantime, an e-mail survey conducted atBrown showed that 71 percent of the 1,200repondents wanted a separate student center,placing a premium on social and performance space.

According to UCS Vice President Jason Klein,Brown's administration has responded positively toa preliminary proposal submitted for a new center.

And like their peers at Brown, Harvard's Cohensays students must press for change.

"The main part of this really has to do withgetting the campus mobilized and showing [theadministration] that there is a need for a studentcenter," he says