Bigelow thinks big for Union

Duke University Union President Jonathan "Deuce" Bigelow is perhaps above all else a great movie fan. Not a good movie fan, a great one. It is a bit ironic, therefore, that his nickname comes from one of the worst flicks in recent memory--Deuce Bigelow: Male Gigolo--and it is a mixture of this love of fine films and weakness for an occasional irreverent flair that he hopes to use to guide his Union presidency this year.

"Once the movie started getting publicity, my friends immediately said 'Deuce'," Bigelow said.

The Lumberton, N.C., native's main goal for the primary programming body on campus is to ensure that the Union remains a "well-oiled" machine.

However, with a budget of more than $500,000 delegated to its 11 committees, the Union needs more than just the occasional spritz of WD-40. The allotted funds are provided by Duke students themselves via the student activities fee, which increased substantially this semester thanks to a student vote last year. Bigelow credits the vote to student confidence in the Union's ability to develop activities on campus.

"The fact that the SAF passed by such a large margin indicates that we must be doing something right," Bigelow said. The Union has not been idle with the extra funding, already inking such top names as Ludacris and Ben Stein.

Bigelow, a classical civilizations major, is a member of the Round Table selective house. Although not currently a member, he has also been involved in the Chapel choir.

The perfect catch phrase might therefore be hard to pin down. Deuce Bigelow: Sings Figaro? Perhaps Deuce Bigelow: Quotes Cicero? Maybe an unoriginal Deuce Bigelow: Union Gigolo? The catch phrases may be endless, but both administrators and students have similarly positive things to say about Bigelow, and the job he is doing as president of the Union.

Duke Student Government president Matt Slovik described Bigelow as "easy to work with" and "personable." "He has a lot of great ideas, and he is dedicated to the Union and the University," Slovik added.

Dean of Students Sue Wasiolek echoed Slovik's sentiments, further focusing on Bigelow's hard-nosed leadership skills.

"The thing that impresses me the most is that he is smart, insightful and he brings with him a healthy level of skepticism to every meeting," she said.

Bigelow said he is dubious of the status quo, dissatisfied with such things as the student events calendar currently offered on the Duke website. He feels the calendar does not accurately represent the extent of student activities happening each day. He envisions a Union that is more assertive in promoting group activities through an expanded calendar.

His insight also extends to the state of student involvement in the arts on campus.

"The general consensus [among students] is that there is a void in the arts at Duke," Bigelow said. He said he feels that there are plenty of activities to engage in, but cites the lack of publicity and incomplete events calender as contributing to the discrepancy.

"Ideally, it should be the burden of the student to be bored,"he said.