Spectator needs to be more transparent about funding
Meghan Charlier
Issue date: 3/2/09 Section: Letters
Auto bailout, check. Home bailout, check. Spectator bailout, check!
Recently, the Student Senate voted on the 2009-2010 Organized Activity Budget, which allocates $3,143,233 of student segregated fees to different organizations across the campus.
In order to receive funding, an organization must submit a budget request to the Finance Commission of Student Senate and go through the process of a budget hearing. The Finance Commission then decides the amount of funding that each organization should receive. If the organization is unhappy with the Finance Commission's decision, they may appeal.
Then the budget goes to the Student Senate, where it is up to Senate to make the final vote based upon the Finance Commission's recommendations.
The Spectator asked for funding this year for the first time since the 2005-2006 Organized Activity Budget process because of their financial problems and the debt they had acquired. They asked to receive $12,000 from student segregated fees and the Finance Commission recommended that they only be allocated $2,500. They did not appeal to the Finance Commission but instead came to Senate the night of the vote for the whole budget to ask that their allocation be increased to $12,000 and Senate decided to give them their full allocation.
As a member of Student Senate, I am very concerned about the lack of information they presented to us the night we had to vote on the budget.
Through various problems with accounting and other financial issues, they had acquired a debt of $16,000 dollars and only had $4,000 in their accounts with which to pay it back. It is understandable that they would like to receive some help to get out of debt but typically, organizations are allowed to operate into debt without being shut down under the umbrella of the university financial system.
It is common practice of the Finance Commission to encourage organizations to get themselves out of debt without relying on student segregated fees. However, they did not appeal to the Finance Commission and instead waited until the last minute to ask Student Senate to bail them out without having all of the knowledge or information about their budget.
Student Senate did end up voting in favor of giving them their full allocation of $12,000 but I think it is imperative that The Spectator be more up-front with their finances in the future.
Student money should not be spent without knowing exactly where and why it is going somewhere, and proper procedures should be followed when applying to receive that money. The Spectator needs to be more transparent about their funding sources and financial problems because the student body deserves to know where their tuition dollars are going.
Meghan Charlier
Student Body Vice President
Recently, the Student Senate voted on the 2009-2010 Organized Activity Budget, which allocates $3,143,233 of student segregated fees to different organizations across the campus.
In order to receive funding, an organization must submit a budget request to the Finance Commission of Student Senate and go through the process of a budget hearing. The Finance Commission then decides the amount of funding that each organization should receive. If the organization is unhappy with the Finance Commission's decision, they may appeal.
Then the budget goes to the Student Senate, where it is up to Senate to make the final vote based upon the Finance Commission's recommendations.
The Spectator asked for funding this year for the first time since the 2005-2006 Organized Activity Budget process because of their financial problems and the debt they had acquired. They asked to receive $12,000 from student segregated fees and the Finance Commission recommended that they only be allocated $2,500. They did not appeal to the Finance Commission but instead came to Senate the night of the vote for the whole budget to ask that their allocation be increased to $12,000 and Senate decided to give them their full allocation.
As a member of Student Senate, I am very concerned about the lack of information they presented to us the night we had to vote on the budget.
Through various problems with accounting and other financial issues, they had acquired a debt of $16,000 dollars and only had $4,000 in their accounts with which to pay it back. It is understandable that they would like to receive some help to get out of debt but typically, organizations are allowed to operate into debt without being shut down under the umbrella of the university financial system.
It is common practice of the Finance Commission to encourage organizations to get themselves out of debt without relying on student segregated fees. However, they did not appeal to the Finance Commission and instead waited until the last minute to ask Student Senate to bail them out without having all of the knowledge or information about their budget.
Student Senate did end up voting in favor of giving them their full allocation of $12,000 but I think it is imperative that The Spectator be more up-front with their finances in the future.
Student money should not be spent without knowing exactly where and why it is going somewhere, and proper procedures should be followed when applying to receive that money. The Spectator needs to be more transparent about their funding sources and financial problems because the student body deserves to know where their tuition dollars are going.
Meghan Charlier
Student Body Vice President
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