The members of the ASUO Programs Finance Committee introduced themselves for the record at their meeting Thursday.
“I’m Mena Ravassipour, Senate Seat No. 3 — two,” she exclaimed, correcting herself.
Ravassipour forgetting which PFC seat she occupies is perhaps understandable given that it came halfway through a five-hour meeting. The meetings, three of which are planned for this week, have a considerable purpose: PFC is charged with making recommendations to the ASUO Student Senate on the budgets for dozens of student groups each year, allocating nearly $5 million.
“What we do is we go through line by line and approve each item in the budget,” PFC Chairman Adrian Gilmore told the Emerald in November.
Gilmore, a law student getting a precocious hand on the gavel, is one of seven PFC members. Colin Andries, who holds Senate Seat No. 3, praised Gilmore’s style of running PFC.
“He’s very calm,” Andries said. “He’s not overbearing, but he’s in control.”
PFC Vice Chairman and At-large member Toby Piering, Programs Committee Appointee Khanh Le, At-large member Joe Snyder and Executive Appointee Michelle Rose round out the committee.
“We have a really good group this year,” Rose said. “We have really, really good chemistry.”
Rose, a pre-business administration major, said she wants to be a local politician and perhaps work with investment or real estate after graduation.
“Working with budgets, I think, will be good no matter what I do,” Rose said.
Rose pointed to the racial diversity of PFC members and said it helps the group work more effectively.
“I think that’s empowering to minority student groups,” Rose said. “They see that we’re not just a run-of-the-mill, financially tight council that decides their future.”
PFC has a guideline, called a benchmark, of $4,996,813 that they can allocate this year. While PFC has some leeway in spending above the benchmark, Rose said it will keep a lid on its spending.
“We’re really serious about that,” Rose said.
Andries said part of the reason he joined PFC was that he had a less-than-ideal experience with PFC last year as a member of the Student Bar Association.
“It didn’t seem like a friendly process to me,” he said. “I wanted to make it a more congenial atmosphere for everyone.”
Andries added that working with students on their problems and meeting new people is the best part of participating in the budget process.
“I just like working with people,” Andries said.
The seven PFC members grilled 10 student groups Thursday, including the European Student Association. The ESA began its fairly typical budget hearing by explaining its purpose.
ASUO Controller Sara Henderson praised the ESA’s fund-raising prowess, but her praise did not cause PFC to go easy on the group. The committee split ESA’s budget into advertising expenses, office supplies, postage, printing and duplication costs and funds for a culture night.
Eventually, PFC was satisfied that the group’s $381 budget was fair and passed it by a vote of 6-0-1, with Gilmore abstaining, as he often does as chairman.
“I’ve got mixed feelings about it,” ESA Executive Director Slobodan Subasic said of the budget. “Before the meeting, we’d hoped for better than that.”
Rose said Subasic’s reaction has become increasingly common due to the economy.
“We’re seeing more slightly disappointed people than people who are excited about their budgets,” she said.