A student referendum asking to cease all Government of the Student Body funding for the Veishea celebration is still underway and making progress, said referendum leader Jonathon Weaver.

Weaver, junior in history, and Paul Duncan, junior in transportation and logistics, organized a campaign about two weeks ago to gather 2,000 student signatures that would request a campus-wide vote on the fate of Veishea’s funding.

“We are making slow and steady progress,” Weaver said. “Most students I have talked to are enthusiastic and supportive [of our cause].”

Weaver said he and Duncan are organizing the signatures outside of their student-leadership duties. Weaver is the Towers Residence Association president and Duncan is the Inter-Residence Hall Association president.

“We are really only hampered by our other massive time commitments,” Weaver said.

Veishea co-chair Brian Nash said he’s in favor of people exercising their rights and using GSB to its fullest.

“That’s why it’s there,” said Nash, junior in mechanical engineering. “They should be active and voice their opinions and do what is necessary, which is what I think they’re doing.”

Nash said he believes the Veishea executive committee is doing a great job getting student input and a wider range of student participants.

“We’ve sat down with Jonathon Weaver, Paul Duncan, UDA President Rick Cordaro and RCA President Andy Walling and talked with them and said we were open for suggestions,” Nash said.

Some student leaders oppose the referendum and said the two men are using their leadership positions as a publicity tool.

Matt Ostanik, Interfraternity Council representative for GSB, said Weaver and Duncan have every right to organize a referendum, but they are not providing any alternative suggestions for Veishea.

“They are failing to exercise good leadership,” Ostanik said. “All they are doing is just tearing something down instead of trying to help it.”

Ostanik, senior in architecture, said he would like to hear suggestions on how to make Veishea more appealing to students instead of getting rid of it altogether. “I have a problem with this kind of approach; we need to work on how to improve it.”

However, Nick DeAngelis, junior in community and regional planning, said it may be time for the students to look over the relevance of Veishea as a student celebration.

“With or without the alcohol – I don’t care,” DeAngelis said. “It just does not have that much of a broad student appeal anymore.”

DeAngelis said he has not been approached about signing the referendum, but he would sign it because he feels Veishea has become “somewhat of a joke.”

“Maybe it’s time to finally decide the fate of Veishea,” he said.