After overcoming our initial excitement of returning to Duke or for the freshies, finally leaving the nest, you’re probably itching for the return of summer. With midterms quickly approaching and the Duke struggle getting real, it seems like April 23rd is years away. This week I got to sit down and chat with the fellas in charge of making April 23rd a day to remember.
For anyone new to Duke Culture, LDOC (Last Day of Classes) is a planned music festival featuring a wide array of daytime programming and live musical performances. LDOC celebrates (as the name suggests) the last day of classes. This year the co-chairs for the LDOC planning committee are Kenny Johnson and Evan Reilly.
With new construction and sections of the BC Plaza closed off during the spring semester, Kenny and Evan have some major logistic issues to overcome. Thankfully, both Kenny and Evan are veterans when it comes to event programming at Duke. Kenny was a LDOC committee member last year and Evan was on Major Attractions.
In addition to overcoming issues with gathering places, Kenny and Evan have made extensive plans “to expand the philanthropy aspect of the festival for this coming year, and are working to make a bigger impact on Durham” as well as a fresh new marketing campaign to make LDOC more “innovative and as fun as possible” for everyone involved.
In fact, both Kenny and Evan think the community aspect of LDOC is one of the music festival’s biggest strengths. “I get a thrill from seeing so many people on the main quad having a great time together,” said Kenny Johnson. For those who are unaware, LDOC is open to all Duke students: undergraduates as well as graduates.
Evan and Kenny are working to highlight this community aspect of the event. LDOC is “an event for students, planned by students,” said Evan; however, that doesn’t mean Duke administrators are absent during the planning process. “I find it encouraging as a student that we have so many people working at this university who are invested in [the students’] well-being and success” said Kenny.
So where are we now in the LDOC process? Besides prepping for midterms, Kenny and Evan are spearheading the search for the LDOC headliner. When asked to name a few possible choices, their only response was “stay tuned for updates.”