More student leaders than ever are seeking funding for their clubs and organizations from ASUI. While ASUI Funding Board Chair Nick Wren said it’s exciting to see so many students taking initiative, it also means that the $72,000 budget ASUI allocates each year to fund student organizations is being depleted much more rapidly than in years past.
Wren said the increase in clubs seeking funding can be attributed to more outreach from student involvement, and last year’s transition from a paper application to an online process.
“Requiring organizations to have an OrgSync account is huge,” Wren said. “They see (the application) every time they log in, so at some point, they’re reminded, hey, there’s this $2,000 to apply for.”
Despite these efforts, only a fraction of the more than 200 student organizations on campus utilize ASUI funds as a resource, according to Wren. Currently, ASUI has granted funding to about 40 organizations.
In order to apply for funding, organizations must submit an application and spreadsheets detailing their financial intentions and attend one of four financial training sessions, the next of which will take place April 8 with applications due today. Applicants must then attend a five to 10 minute hearing before the board to answer questions.
After only two of these sessions, though, only $17,000 remains left in the ASUI budget. Wren said that in all likelihood, the remaining money will be doled out in the third round of applications, and the fourth training session will be cancelled.
Wren said that even though the process has become more streamlined than in the past, there is still room to increase efficiency.
“(Student Organization Funding Board Vice Chair Kailey Holt) and I can look at apps every week and pretty much tell by looking at them whether they fall under our bylaws. But we can’t make decisions ourselves because we’re not the entire board, and only the board can make decisions,” Wren said. “Even if (the applications) are really good, they have to come into a hearing for five or 10 minutes to tell us what they’re doing — even if it’s totally apparent if they’re good to go.”
The Funding Board will vote to change their bylaws in order to amend this inefficiency at their next meeting, and if it passes in the board, it still has to be passed through ASUI senate.
The proposed amendment to the process would make the required turn-in date for the application earlier, so the board could meet before the hearings to review applications.
“That way, any super-good applications where we don’t have any questions — and we actually get a lot of those — can be approved right away, and we can say ‘hey, you’ve been approved for funding, you don’t need to come in, great application,” Wren said. “Then we can ask applicants we have a few questions for, and we’re not exactly sure if it falls under our bylaws, to come into the traditional hearing to clear a few things up for us.”
For now, though, those hoping for a piece of the remaining funds for their organization can expect to attend a mandatory hearing.
Hannah Shirley can be reached at [email protected]