The marching band’s trip to play in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Ireland is back on after being canceled in mid-May. Interim Chancellor James Woodward revoked the original decision. The trip was canceled due to concerns related to state funding and budget cuts. Vice Chancellor Thomas Stafford and Associate Vice Chancellor Alexander Miller were involved in the original decision to cancel the trip back in spring. ”At that time we were under a severe travel freeze,” said Stafford. “We both agreed that a trip to Ireland, an international trip, would be very expensive, and wouldn’t be appropriate for the budget constraints at the time.” However, an article published in The News and Observer in July shone light on the issue and triggered backlash, leading officials to reconsider the decision.  The article said organizers were worried that with the budget situation so unclear, having such a large state sponsored trip would make the school look bad. It also referenced the Mary Easley hiring controversy as motivation for wanting to ensure that the school’s reputation would not be tainted any further.  Stafford said the issue regarding Mary Easley had nothing to do with the decision to cancel the trip to Ireland.  ”The discussion was based entirely on the budget situation and the travel restrictions,” he said. “When people see that a student organization is taking an international trip, they don’t always know who’s paying for it. It could have created an impression that we wouldn’t have wanted to be created.” The article brought about much criticism, as students were paying for the trip themselves. ”I was pretty disappointed,” said Brian Bendana, a junior in zoology. “I read the e-mail that Dr. [Paul] Garcia sent us and it sounded a little fishy because I know Dr. Garcia wouldn’t want to cancel the trip on us. It was kind of a dumb decision because we were paying for the trip ourselves.” Woodward said he first heard of the cancellation after reading the N&O article, and moved quickly to reinstate the trip. ”I reversed the decision within an hour of learning it had been made,” said Woodward. “By that time the budget picture was more clear. I could find no reason of depriving the students of what I consider to be a marvelous educational decision for them.”  Public criticism was high, and Woodward received many angry emails. ”More than any issue since I’ve been here,” he said of the correspondence over the trip.  Once the trip was back on, hotel and flight reservations that had already been canceled had to be rebooked. The cost to do so is $21,000.  ”Under no circumstances will the students be asked to pay more than they were originally asked to,” said Woodward.  Woodward said the money to rebook flight and hotel reservations was raised from supporters of the University, including senior officers, trustees and others.  However, the $21,000 rebooking fee has not been covered completely.  ”There’s still some money to be raised,” said Bendana. “We’re still working on fundraising.” Nonetheless, students are happy the trip is back on, and Bendana is looking forward to the experience.  ”I’m pretty excited to be in this big parade and to go to Ireland for the first time,” he said. “I’ve never been.”