Current concerts coordinator looks to expand involvement
A small role of distributing event posters as a freshman has given way to major leadership opportunities for Adam Mayer, who will take over as president of Carolina Productions in January.
Mayer, who currently leads CP’s concerts committee, says he wants to create opportunities for more students to take paths to leadership as he has through CP.
“Every little thing you do, from handbills to making reference calls, really makes a difference in our organization. So that’s one of my huge focuses for the following year,” said Mayer, a third-year exercise science student. “Making sure that we have things for people to do to make it meaningful and making a meaningful experience is a huge goal I have.”
The success of the organization, which brings free entertainment to campus for students and faculty throughout the year, is not based on the number of people involved, Mayer said, but on the quality of the contribution each person makes.
Mayer has a similar philosophy for booking entertainment to bring to campus. His goal is to “get the most out of the money we spend” by striking a balance between the number and the quality of events CP coordinates.
“I want to provide a quantity of quality events. I don’t want to just throw events on there to fill a calendar, but at the same time, I don’t want to blow all the money that we have for just one or two events either,” he said.
In the last academic year, CP hosted 48 events and showed 55 movie titles on a programming budget of $441,400. More than 8,900 individual students attended at least one CP event, with total attendance at all events topping 28,000, according to the organization’s 2012-13 annual report.
This semester, CP decided not to host its annual fall concert after Mayer’s committee failed to book an artist in time due to tour and scheduling constraints after one act fell through.
“It’s harder and harder to make sure that we have a quality event for all students,” he said. “I could have thrown in a concert if I had wanted to, but I think planning $60,000 worth of an event in two weeks is not worth it at all, and I don’t think CP would be using our money wisely if we did that.”
Instead, Mayer is looking ahead to the next semester, when CP hopes to use its funds to explore other concert options, including a possible higher-profile act, Greene Street performances or a music festival.
Mayer said he also hopes to put more emphasis on student performances in the next year, after seeing the popularity of this semester’s Talent Tuesdays, which showcased student musicians, poets and comedians.
Actively involved in multiple programs on campus — including serving as an orientation leader, University 101 peer leader and Service Saturday site leader, as well as being a member of the newly recolonized chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity — Mayer has plans to leave an impact on the university beyond his role with CP.
And, he said, he wants the same for his CP staff, which is why he will continue to encourage them to branch out in their campus connections.
“That’s a huge thing, is making sure that people inside the organization know that they’re making an impact here at Carolina Productions, but also at the university in general … I want people to know that, hey, I’m part of Carolina Productions, but we’re doing so much more,” he said. “I want our core to feel connected to this university the way that I feel now.”