Concerns about how student groups allocate their budgets continued to block the approval of several student groups’ 2005-2006 budgets on Monday when the ASUO Programs Finance Committee held its second session of budget hearings.
The Non-traditional Student Union and Outlaws, a group of law students who focus on legal issues concerning the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, were unable to receive budget approval because ASUO is currently revising the standardized stipend model, which dictates how stipends are paid to officers of student groups.
“It’s really unfortunate for a lot of groups,” PFC chairwoman Persis Pohowalla said. “I feel for them.”
The revision of the stipend model was in response to a letter from University President Dave Frohnmayer, who suggested a revision after noticing that student stipends made up a disproportionate amount of the budgets for some student groups – up to 70 percent in some cases.
Any student groups that pay their officers with stipends will have their budget proposals tabled until January, when the new stipend model should be in place.
Representatives from the Committee for Musical Arts – the first group scheduled for hearings Monday night – failed to show up for their budget hearing. PFC then voted unanimously to completely de-fund CMA. The group has five business days to appeal the decision.
Next, representatives from the Art History Association presented their case for a 97 percent increase in funding.
AHA is a second-year student group that primarily serves to host an art history graduate symposium and send students to various art history conferences throughout the country.
AHA representatives said they wanted the increase, which totaled less than $300, to expand their symposium to include undergraduates and make more funds available for conferences.
The executive’s recommendation was that AHA spend student money on expanding the symposium and bringing more art history events to campus instead of sending students to conferences.
PFC voted to partially fund the estimated registration costs for two art history conferences only after several committee members had elicited verbal agreements from AHA representatives that financial assistance for attending the conferences would be available to all interested students, not just AHA members.
The total AHA budget was increased 82.6 percent to a total of $548.
| Where does your money go? Committee for Musical Arts – de-funded Art History Association – $548 Association of School Psychology Students – $412 Outlaws – Tabled until January Non-traditional Student Union – tabled until January |
The Association of School Psychology Students then presented their proposed budget, which included several proposed increases.
The executive recommendation involved partially funding most of the proposed increases.
Representatives from ASPS said their priority was to fully fund the purchase of thank you gifts for the speakers they bring to campus for the Brown Bag lecture series.
PFC ended up approving a budget with a 30.7 percent increase that fully funded the thank you gifts.
After Outlaws and the Non-traditional Student Union presented their proposed budgets, both of which were tabled until January, PFC read through and voted on the mission statements and goals of 24 other student groups.
Though PFC needs to approve the mission statement and goals of an organization before it can approve a budget, the committee decided to vote on them separately from the budget hearings in order to save time, Pohowalla said.
