If the ASUO Programs Finance Committee’s budget recommendation for next year stands, the Career Center will cut 840 half-hour student appointments, one career fair and one day a week for drop-ins, Career Center Director Deb Chereck said.
On Monday, the PFC, a student government committee that allocates incidental fees to groups, gave the Career Center an increase of $22,164 to use next year.
The 7 percent increase gave the group a final budget of $338,789. The Career Center, which provides career and employment resources to students, had requested a 14.97 percent increase of $47,317 to cover rising costs of operations.
The 2002-03 PFC forced the Career Center to use reserve money earmarked for new construction to finance its programming, Chereck said. As a result, the Career Center made an agreement with the PFC to a four-year series of budget raises, so that it could deplete its reserve balance, but at the same time plan for the future, she said.
The ASUO Executive recommendation for the group this year was set at 7 percent, less than half of the previous agreement.
The discussion peaked when PFC member Kristin Kato asked ASUO Finance Coordinator Nick Hudson what he would do as a student.
“Personally, I would fully fund them,” Hudson said.
The PFC promised Chereck it would re-evaluate the Career Center’s case at the end of the funding process.
During its hearing, the Mentor Program, which does student mediation and group communication training, requested a 12.35 budget increase, but the PFC gave them an increase of only 6.91 percent, or $5,959.
Without the extra money, Group Assistant Director Sydney Ledford said, the group would have to fire student recruiting assistants. The 6.91 percent increase is what the Executive recommended, giving the program an annual budget of $92,168.
The Mentor Program requested the extra money to help facilitate networking for student career searches, Ledford said.
The PFC’s inability to grant both the Mentor Program and the Career Center’s budget requests caused PFC member Richard Malena to be “the most frustrated I’ve been this season” because of the cuts to staff positions, he said.
Ledford said she felt “hopeful that the senators will re-evaluate” the decision.
Five other groups had their hearings Monday as well.
Annie Bentz, director of the mediation and communication training group Conflict Resolution Services, requested an 8.86 percent increase.
The PFC sided with the Executive recommendation, voting 6-0-1 to raise its budget 7 percent to $44,266.
Bentz said that the decision was “disappointing but workable.”
During its hearing, the Spencer Co-op Family Center requested and received a 2.37 percent budget increase. The non-profit organization vowed to use the money to cover minimum-wage and cost-of-living increases for its employees.
To help pay for another stipend position, the PFC granted the Chinese Student Association’s request for a 17.09 percent budget increase. The PFC recommended a $10,808 budget for the group next year.
To help pay for art exhibitions on and off campus, the PFC voted to enlarge the Arts and Administration Student Forum budget by 6.12 percent, for a total of $520. The group had asked for a 63 percent increase to expand the program.
The Forensics Team requested a 58 percent budget increase to help pay for travel expenses.
Kato proposed funding the group at 10 percent, a $3,192 increase, and the other PFC members agreed.
This coming year, the Forensics Team will receive a total of $35,121 in incidental fees to help pay for travel expenses.
Co-director Aaron Donaldson said it was a fantastic decision.