News > October 11, 2007

By Molly Nevola | Staff writer

The University Committee on Student Life instated a moratorium on all new student groups and organizations during the summer, intended to last all of this fall semester, but the Student Government Appropriations and Charter committee is trying to end it now rather than later.

This moratorium on student groups, which does not include Greek organizations, originated in the University Committee on Student Life when a significant increase in the numbers of student groups put a strain on Student Budget Advisory Committee funding.

The SBAC provides funding to subsidize the expenses of about 160 campus groups with funding that does not increase from year to year. According to Treasurer Sarah Walker, the budget for the 2006-’07 academic year was $565,284.80. Since the budget does not increase, there is less funding available for each group as more groups apply.

As a result, Walker conducted a study last year and presented it to the university’s Chief Financial Officer Nancy Suttenfield, who granted an extra $25,000 for the 2007-’08 year. “This amount, however,” Walker said, “is not enough to cover the annual growth in both the number of student groups requesting funding and the continual annual increase in the amount requested from student groups.”

SBAC co-chairs senior Bryan Keith and sophomore Jermyn Davis worked over the summer to create new guidelines for the moratorium to be lifted as soon as possible.

In creating its new set of guidelines, the committee is looking to make the rules more stringent in terms of the chartering process itself.

“More than anything, what we’re doing is codifying exactly what we are looking for,” Keith said.

“We are working to make the whole process less fluid than it has been in past times.”

The process through which groups are approved starts in the Appropriations and Charter committee and then goes through both the SG legislature and the Office of Student Life before it is presented to the Faculty Senate.

The ease in chartering and consequent redundancy in groups put a strain on the resources available to other groups who necessitate their normal funding.

“We owe it to these older groups who are doing unique things on campus to give them what they need to do their jobs,” Keith said.

Davis said that with this new process, the committee is encouraging similar groups to combine. Currently, there are several clubs waiting in the wings to be chartered, including the Investment Club, Book Club, Information Student Systems Group and Club Squash.

Appropriations and Charter is currently made up of 11 students and two co-chairs, including four members who are also on the SBAC, two Greek members and several new freshmen.

The committeee also is pushing to end the moratorium by making the process more stringent and efficient.

“We hate making this stricter and making our groups jump through hoops, but until the resources are made available, the stringent guidelines are the best thing we’ve got,” Keith said.

This year, Walker and SBAC will present another request for an increase in funding to the CFO during the budgeting season, which begins in February.

However, Walker emphasizes that the university does have a limited amount of money and that all requests for increases will be looked at in perspective.