Carrie Underwood’s recent campus performance has some students asking, “Why her and why so much?”
The American Idol winner’s production, which attracted a record ETSU audience of 8,000 at the Mini Dome, also attracted attention to the SGA selection process for contracting entertainers.
Each fall and spring term ETSU pays an entertainer to come and perform on campus.
The events are free for students and, for the most part, a highlight of the semester.
But a lot of students are still unclear as to what voice they have in the selection process.
“I’m not really sure where my vote goes,” said Brent Dowling, a sophomore economics major at ETSU. “Is it even worth taking the time?” Dowling’s concerns were echoed by Kendall Kelly, sophomore biology major.
“Although I’m sure SGA looks at our votes, I doubt it really will change who they line up,” Kelly said.
SGA members that student votes are essential to the decision making process and that the votes do matter. But around 85 percent of the student body does not participate in the vote.
Although it has already been concluded, the vote for the fall 2008 concert was advertised via a campuswide e-mail and fliers.
The list of artists available to be voted on is generated through the write-in portion of the online surveys that SGA conducts, where students can list specific artists they are interested in.
“We (the SGA) take the top 50 or so suggestions and the senate narrows the list,” said Corrina Jackson, SGA secretary of external affairs.
The narrowed down suggestions are added to the next official poll.
Typically about 10 to 15 percent of the student body, 1,200 or so students, go online to vote for their preferred entertainer.
For the spring 2007 poll, the one including Underwood, 1,900 students voted.
Compared to most semesters, this is a fairly large number.
From there, SGA collects and reviews the votes, and eliminates artists who don’t meet the availability and price range limits.
This leaves them with a list of concrete artists who can potentially come perform. The student vote is then reviewed, and SGA invites the artists highest up on the list.
“This is one of the reasons it is so essential to vote in these surveys,” Jackson said. “We like to be able to get on of the top five artists or at least one of the top 10.
With Carrie, we were able to get in the top 5.” SGA member, Suzy Azzazy said that after the online voting students can view the results from the poll next to the elevator on the first floor of the Culp Center.
The price tag for bringing an artist of Underwood’s caliber has also caused concern from students.
Over $500,000 was used to secure Underwood’s performance and provide a one-time use stage for her to entertain on.
That funding comes from student fees.
In the spring of 2005, students voted to increase the activity fee to $20 per student per semester. The money collected through these fees is added to the “B.U.C. Fund” or Better University Community Fund.
This is divided up into a general fund and a superfund, the latter of which going towards providing the spring and fall entertainment.
An entertainer as financially taxing as Carrie Underwood doesn’t get booked every semester.
Typically, the overall cost is much lower. “Bands are about $40,000 plus production,” Azzazy said.
By following modest budgeting, the B.U.C. Fund has enough money to finance a larger, more expensive production about every four years.
Other recent entertainers include The All American Rejects, The Goo Goo Dolls, and comedian David Spade.
The SGA tries to appease both their budget and the student body.
“I think we do a great job,” Jackson said.
“We take the survey first to see what the students want, then go to what we afford . student interests do come first,” Jackson said.

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