In a departure from previous years, Program Board said it will donate all proceeds from Spring Fling ticket sales to World Central Kitchen, a District-based nonprofit that provides meals to communities affected by natural disasters and humanitarian crises. Program Board leaders said they partnered with the University to lower ticket prices, hoping to incentivize more student turnout and connect the student body with an important philanthropic cause.

“We’re trying to find a way to rework [Spring Fling], and how we could come back to how it was a few years ago,” Program Board Chair Alexa Barker said. “Our whole entire process throughout the entire year has been, how can we just decrease ticket prices overall and regain our view within the student body?”

Barker said the organization received pushback from the student body last year after Spring Fling ticket prices reached $65, and the concert saw low attendance as a result. She said the concert is expensive to put on, given there are production and artist costs, plus additional money that needs to be put toward securing the Smith Center and other safety protocols.

Barker said Program Board was looking forward to partner with the University after the Division of Student Affairs approached the organization in October asking if they’d be interested in partnering with the office to donate ticket sale proceeds to WCK.

Barker said although Program Board’s budget has expanded this year with support from the Division of Student Affairs, the group is still contributing the bulk of its own funds to the event and will not recoup those costs, as all ticket proceeds will be donated to World Central Kitchen. She said the group’s budget draws from Student Government Association allocations, University Wide Program Funding requests and departmental support from the University.

Because Program Board and the University wanted to further encourage attendance, they also focused on selecting an artist who they felt would attract a broad range of students to the Smith Center, Barker said. She said Program Board aimed to choose a musician who could appeal to GW’s diverse student body, someone accessible and enjoyable to a wide range of groups on campus.

“It’s very, very hard to find an artist that is going to fit this University demographic, because it is so unique,” she said. “Then even deeper, everybody’s music genres are so different, but I think Flo Milli kind of fits that niche perfectly.”

University spokesperson Skyler Sales said Program Board lowered the price to $10 in hopes of garnering increased student engagement after the Division of Student Affairs and Program Board heard feedback that students did not attend Spring Fling in 2024 and 2025 due to the high ticket prices, which sold for $25 to $65. 

“This was made possible through a strategic shift in budget priorities, support from sponsors and supplemental funding from DSA to ensure the event remains accessible while still generating significant proceeds for WCK,” Sales said, though she did not elaborate on what shift officials made in their budget to help finance Program Board’s philanthropic work. 

Sales said this year’s Buff & Bloom week, an annual spring celebration inspired by the cherry blossom season, featuring student events, is themed “For Good,” which includes the philanthropic campaign for WCK as the GW community had a desire to make a tangible impact during a time of “global humanitarian crises.” Program Board’s support for WCK comes after GW and an anonymous trustee partnered to fund internships supporting humanitarian aid efforts in Gaza in February.

Sales said WCK is a “natural partner,” for the University, considering the foundation was created by chef José Andrés, who also founded GW’s Global Food Institute.

“This initiative serves as a pilot for integrating philanthropy into large-scale campus traditions and the continued exploration of charitable partnerships for Program Board events,” Sales said.

In addition to the headline act and a not yet announced opening act, DSA and Program Board are also hosting a pre-Spring Fling daytime festival in University Yard, where yet-to-be announced DMV and student artists will play on a stage and they will host activities for students to participate in, replacing Blossom Bash, an event that DSA previously ran in University Yard ahead of Spring Fling.

Instagram posts advertising the concert’s availability for all students in the DMV area since the artist announcement are widely spread because Flo Milli’s contract specifies that only students are allowed to attend and Barker said the organization wanted to extend an invitation to students at these universities to sell as many tickets as possible.  

Program Board Vice Chair Taj Haque said the group worked with University officials to gather more student input this year, including through focus groups that helped guide artist selection and shape the event.

Haque said the partnership with World Central Kitchen is intended to resonate with a broad cross-section of students, including those from regions where the organization operates. Because Spring Fling reaches much of the undergraduate population, she said the collaboration offers a way to both engage students and maximize fundraising efforts.

“Since we reach such a broad audience, they were like ‘I think this would be an ideal way to reach the student org, and get everyone connected to this cause,'” Haque said.