Finished in aged copper and beige stone, the new Shapiro Campus Center opened this month, becoming a part of campus life with the arrival of the first group of students last week. First-years, sophomores and upperclassmen began to find the new campus center, located in the very center of the Brandeis campus, and began to purchase books in the expanded Brandeis bookstore and sip coffee at the new Java City.

In addition to the bookstore, Student Activities, the Department of Community Service, Student Development and Judicial Education, the Office of the Dean of Student Life, the Student Union, the Waltham Group, Archon, BTV, WBRS, the Women's Resource Center, Triskelion, SSIS, SEA/Burp/ARC, the Brandeis Media Coalition and this newspaper either have already or will be moved soon to the new facility.

"I think the building is going to contribute immensely to the flavor of campus," Kristine Carlson Asselin, director of Student Activities said. "Having a 24-hour building will be a popular -- and a much needed -- opportunity for students to study, hang out, get involved with campus organizations, drink coffee, buy books and meet new people."

Brandeis intends for the building to live up to its location at the center of campus. The campus center will include a student art gallery and a 249-seat undergraduate theater, organized by Jonathan Dunlea, new to the Brandeis staff. The center also provides a 24-hour library and computer clusters for both individual and group study.

"The new campus center will be a symbolic, student-oriented building at the center of campus, vibrant with student activities," Brandeis's web site offers, "complementing the consolidation of key student services either in Usdan or Kutz."

The University organized a transition team, made up of members of both the Brandeis student body and the staff, to ease the changes that have occurred on campus. Six committees -- Programming, Outreach, Communications, Policy and Procedures, Jobs and Training, and Governance -- organized and carried out the various tasks needed to make the building functional over the summer.

"By making calls on everything from poster policy to furniture placement," Student Union President and member of the transition team, Ben Brandzel '03 said about the team, "we students have already made this new center our own. The transition team has transformed the student center from a just a big new building into an invaluable addition to student life."

"The programming subcommittee created a full plate of activities to introduce students to their new campus center. "Our role was not only to brainstorm our own programs," Marci Surkes '03, a member of the committee, said, "But also to encourage other campus groups and organizations to hold their events in the new building."

"It's hard to gauge exactly how the opening of the Shapiro Center will be," Surkes said, "obviously it will require a huge commitment on the parts of all students for it to reach its full potential --and it may take some getting used to. But, the tremendous amount of freedom and leverage that students had this summer, to write the mission statement and policies for the new building, was unprecedented."

The outreach subcommittee has assisted organizations moving to the new student center and will continue to publicize the advantages of the new building to the student body.

"(We are) focused on maximizing the value of the new center for the average Brandeisian." Brandzel said in regard to the Student Union's role in the transition. "This means 24-hour access, food service, technology and entertainment. We want to keep governance policy flexible and responsive to student needs as they emerge."

Some students did register complaints about the new facility. "It looks like the Statue of Liberty," Avital Asuleen '06 said, "and there's a lot of empty space." Asuleen was looking forward, however, about the facilities the campus center offered. "I'm excited for the theater," she said.

Other students joked about the pastel color of the building. Already, a few Brandeis students have begun referring to it as "the Green Monster," the obvious reference being Fenway Park's famous icon. Students have also complained the cafe in the center does not take points. Brandzel described this issue as one of many upon which the Union Senate will focus.

"For this year," Brandzel said, "the new caf will not accept points or meal allotments, so we need to be vigilant that campus life is not divided between people checking mail and eating in Usdan, and doing activities in Shapiro. We want more student interaction, not less. Also, the 24-hour food service will only remain in place if it is used, so students need to be aware of that.