This weekend accepted students will flood the campus as part of the “Spring Fling” event run by the Admissions Office. It is one of the many signs that the year is coming to a close. Seniors will need no reminder of this as finals, thesis due dates, and graduation get closer. For the rest of us, the warm weather is enough to pull us away from studying or any kind of focused activity.

It is hard to focus or pay attention to anything when there is so much out there to distract you. I don’t blame anyone, as I am one of the first culprits of this procrastination. Unfortunately, now is also the time you least want to let things slip.

I do not just mean finals, though that is a big concern. Most club leaders will know about the annual headache they face this weekend also know as Budget Hearings. If you have not signed up for a slot, now is the time to do so. By the time you read this article, we will be most of the way through our first day of hearings.

These meetings help the Treasurer and Business Manager of Community Senate decide the amount of funding each club will receive. Most clubs get their proposed budgets cut, which is inevitable, even with the amount of money Senate controls. The final budget is likely to be presented at next week’s Senate meeting.

While the Budget Hearings are mandatory for all clubs, they are not the only important club requirement this year. Also on the list of must-dos for club leaders is the Leadership Retreat on April 23. On that day, from noon until 3:00 p.m., Senate will facilitate leadership training for clubs. It will be a general crash course in how to lead a club at Guilford. Every club must be represented in order to have access to their funds in the coming year. One person can represent more than one club at this retreat, but no more than two clubs.

The fun part of this retreat comes at 3:00. There will be a reception for leaders on campus and the annual Dick Dyer Awards Ceremony. The entire campus is invited and greatly encouraged to come take part in the festivities. Awards are given out to both student leaders and faculty and staff who have greatly enhanced the campus community in the past year.

The goal for this retreat to both celebrate leaders in our community and pass on the information past leaders have acquired in the last year.

While the weather is beautiful let’s not forget that business is still happening. However conservative that sounds, there is a reason. In the next two and final weeks of Senate we will be looking at proposals such as the Disk Golf Course to potentially come out of the Capital Budget.

There are still exciting things happening yet this semester.