With plans to convert an empty space in the Village into a home for the Activist Resource Center off the table, leaders of that club are now working with administrators to secure a new space.University administrators said renovating the room into a home for the ARC would be too costly.

The space has been unoccupied since the building's completion in 2003, Chief Operating Officer Peter French said. The space was left empty because the project budget could not cover its completion at the time.

The ARC campaigned for the Village space in March. Others at the time also suggested turning the space into a late-night eatery, a convenience store or more housing.

Rachel Kleinbaum '08, an ARC coordinator, said she believes the renovation would cost between $200,000 and 300,000.

The group is now continuing its efforts to find a location that would be a central headquarters for all the activist groups on campus. A space in the Shapiro Campus Center is one option the ARC said it is currently considering.

Student Union president Alison Schwartzbaum '08, and Director of Student Activities Stephanie Grimes have organized a committee to decide the fate of a conference room in Shapiro.

Kleinbaum said that ARC already has "a resolution in the works" to present to the committee.

Assistant Dean of Student Life Alwina Bennett said she is also aware of interest in the space from Students Talking About Relationships, or STAR, and emphasized that all interested groups would be allowed to petition for the conference room.

The ARC is campaigning for a permanent, undisturbed location where activist groups could organize meetings and workshops. At the moment, Kleinbaum said, "The ARC meets in upper Usdan by the Boulevard, which is noisy and people come up and interrupt us at our meetings."

Other groups such as the Brandeis Labor Coalition, the Radical Student Association and Students Taking Action Now: Darfur meet in the Castle Commons or in Village common rooms, where it is not possible to reserve meeting places, Kleinbaum said.

Kleinbaum added that ARC also owns a "substantial library" currently spread out over various locations and student homes. The library would be easier to present in a larger space, she said.

"It would be a place where activists can meet and interact," she said, adding "It would just really facilitate what we're trying to do."

Another ARC coordinator, Sarah Kinsler '08, said she believes the activist community at Brandeis is currently "fragmented" and that groups could realize their goals more effectively with a physical activist resource center.

"We all have similar interests-labor issues are women's issues, environmental issues are labor issues, our issues intersect so much," Kinsler said.Matt Rogers '08, president of STAND, said he does not know how much his group would be involved with the Activist Resource Center. But he said he thinks "it's an important thing for the campus in general and would be helpful to our club as well."

Kinsler added that the ARC would be a space for all groups, even for people who do not consider themselves part of the activist community.

Jamie Ansorge '09, a Democracy for America coordinator and former non-senate chair of the Student Union's Social Justice Committee, said he would like to enlist alumni in the activist groups' effort.

Ansorge said alumni would be very supportive of constructing an ARC because activist groups on campus have been effective in the past, despite being fragmentated from each other.

"There is a clear desire within the activist community and within the student body and student union government for such a space and the administration needs to get behind the students in this effort," Ansorge said.