Get Along to Unite, Daedongje
This year, the Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)’s May festival Daedongje, was held on May 3rd and 4th at the Natural Science Campus (NSC) and on the 11th and 12th at the Humanities Social Science Campus (HSSC). This year, the slogan of the NSC, “Sungkyunje- Yurokhwahong,” which means “the beautiful blooming scenery of spring,” created a lively atmosphere at the festival. Meanwhile, the HSSC named its slogan “Liberation: Prohibit the Prohibition.” During the daytime, student booths like the SKKU branding team Drsk’s provided special experiences to Kingos. Also, various promotion booths of brands, including Cass and Monster Energy, were set up in the Geumjandi Square. At the NSC, student teams, including SWAY and Hwarokcheong, performed on stage. At HSSC, student clubs, including LCDA and JDA, also presented their performances. Finally, at both campuses, artists such as IVE, Crush, Yoon Dohyun Band (YB), and ITZY made splendid final touches for the 2023 SKKU Daedongje. Song Hyun-ji (Junior, School of Global Leader) reflected on the Daedongje and commented, “It was the most enjoyable festival I have experienced during my three years of school. In particular, the fireworks I saw during the performance will become an unforgettable memory.”
For a More Righteous and Enjoyable Daedongje
There were various criticisms regarding the event that called for a smoother festival next time. First, since the audition and mid-term season overlapped, performance teams remarked that they faced a tight schedule in preparing for the audition and how earlier notice might have prevented the inconvenience. Moreover, there were complaints that the student’s qualifications to perform excluded graduate and exchange students. The student council SKKUP responded to participants that it was due to internal affairs, and the teams had to exclude their members without a complete explanation. One of the participants said to the SKT, “The time and money excluded students invested for the audition could not be compensated. The teams had to stay up all night for weeks to keep up with the changes.” Also, SKKUP carried out the distribution of T-shirts for students. They had claimed that they would improve its distribution this year at their public hearing. However, unlike their earlier promise, there seemed to be no noticeable improvement compared to last year’s insufficient quantity and inefficient system. Finally, during the HSSC’s festival, the Large Playground was restricted without prior notice. It was due to concerns about overcrowding, but it caused backlash from many Kingos, criticizing how the student council could have prevented it by calculating the capacity and organizing entry lines in advance. In addition, there seemed to be communication problems with the external controlling staff members. It appeared that the external staff unilaterally followed the simple instructions of the student council without portable radio transceivers. This resulted in a lack of complex control systems, causing demands for improved control measures in the future for a more stable festival.