Speaking of swankfests, Bwog's eyes widened at the shindig Columbia is putting on for its employees in Roone Arledge right about now. It's invite only, so we can't tell you what's inside except to say that it involves bright neon lights and bouncy Christmas music. If you manage to beg, barter, or sneak your way in, eat a canape for us.

Meanwhile, we missed the send-off party, but a cadre of SCEG-types are downtown as we speak, presumably having their say at the last foregone conclusion of a City Council meeting on Manhattanville. More info to follow.

Congratulations to Vikram Pandit, who is about to go from exceedingly loaded to unbelievably loaded. Pandit is a triple Columbia alumnus, having earned both bachelor's and master's degrees in electrical engineering in the 70s before selling out to get a PhD in finance in 1986. Yesterday, he was named CEO of Citigroup, a company worth approximately a shitmegaton of cash. Earlier this year Pandit sold Citigroup a hedge fund, Old Lane Partners, for a cool $800 million; now he is once again is in control of his old company, along with a laundry list of unbelievably huge assets including the bank inside Lerner. And he's still on Columbia's Board of Trustees. Tao Tan has a long way to go.

In other news, Harvard is making sure the fairly well-off can keep up with the truly moneyed. For families making between $120,000 and $180,000, costs will be hewed in twain! Other "elite institutions" are expected to jump on the bandwagon. Will Columbia put its money where its mouth is?

Whether or not it does, you can still pretend to be elite on New Year's eve. The Columbia Club is offering tickets to a veritable swankfest at the classy Opus 22 lounge downtown. According to Newsday, it's where to go if you're looking for "smart, young energy," and for only $135 a ticket if you buy by Friday, it's practically a steal. Alumni from Yale, Cornell, Princeton, Penn, and Brown will also be there, so you can get your inter-Ivy network on along with your party.