An open forum will be held at 3:30 p.m. March 22 in the Idaho Commons Clearwater Room for students to ask questions and learn more about the allocation of their student fees.
The forum is the final step in an audit process started by ASUI President Samantha Perez to determine if student activity fees were being used appropriately.
“It just happened that one department, the Undergraduate Student Research Grant, wasn’t using their money anymore so we were able to reallocate $10.25 to other departments,” Perez said.
According to a breakdown of the student activity fee, students were paying $6 each semester for Student Research Grants, $3 for Wheatland transit service, and $1.25 for the Department of Health, Physcial Education, Recreation and Dance (HPERD) locker services. Perez said the grants were not being used, the transit service contract ran out during the summer and ASUI determined the HPERD locker services should not be included in the student activity fee.
This allowed ASUI to reallocate the money to other departments that requested an increase in funding for next year without recommending an overall increase in the student activity fee.
“We submitted our proposal to President Nellis, and then he will include that in his recommendation to the State Board of Education as a whole package,” Perez said. “Included in that will be the student activity fee, the technology fee, the facilities fee and tuition. He’ll present that whole package that will then be approved or modified by the State Board of Education.”
Perez said as far she knows, the University of Idaho hasn’t had a zero percent increase in student fees in the last 10 years.
“I had no idea going into it what it would look like at the end or what our recommendation would look like but I’m really pleased that we did this process and I’m really excited that we have this flexibility,” Perez said.
Perez said she thinks the audit process sends a good message to students and the SBOE because the student activity fee is overseen by students.
“It shows we’re being really responsible with that money and we’re asking the questions that need to be asked and we’re holding all of these departments accountable,” Perez said.
Entities such as the Women’s Center, Kibbie Dome, Intramural sports and Student Health receive funding from the student activity fee. Heather Gasser, director of the Women’s Center, said she was pleased with the audit process and is excited about a portion of the unused funds that will be turned over to the Women’s Center to help fund the LGBT office.
“I think it’s important for offices that are beneficiaries, like the Women’s Center, to have that continuous opportunity to highlight the good work that we’re doing and how we’re making use of the students’ money,” Gasser said.
The LGBT office currently receives 25 cents per student every semester from the Women’s Center activity fee funding. After the audit process, ASUI was able to allocate a $1.25 increase specifically for the LGBT office.
“It will be truly transformational. That additional funding, with the 25 cents that we currently have, will fund about half of the salary of a program coordinator,” Gasser said. “It will also transform the office from being something that has been within another office to being a stand-alone office which I think increases accessibility, visibility, and better serves students.”
Gasser said she thinks it is important for ASUI to look at how student fees are being utilized by the various organizations that those fees support.
“I appreciate Samantha’s leadership in tackling this issue because I think it’s really important that we, as institutions, look at how the students are spending their money and making sure that it’s going towards what it should be,” Gasser said.
Perez said the university has had to cut several departments and positions and restructure in order to accommodate the recent struggles in the economy. She said the allocation of student fees is not flexible, but tuition is.
“The university had to cut the fat out. It had to start cutting muscle and bone out. Now the university is trying to rebuild and try and reinvest strategically in areas that are really important,” Perez said. “I think the zero percent increase in student activity fee is going to help the (university) because they can be more flexible.”
Kaitlyn Krasselt can be reached at
[email protected]