Student Activities Finance Board members say they didn’t make a concentrated effort to increase cultural group funding this year – with about $137,000 more money at their disposal and a strong year of cultural group programming behind them, the decision was an easy one.

Le’Jamiel Goodall, Associated Student Government’s financial vice president said the board tried to reward cultural groups for their years of excellence, though the widespread funding increases were helped by primarily by a rise in Student Activities Fee.

“When you have more money, you can make more people happy,” said Goodall, a Speech junior.

Nearly every cultural group received increases from last year, with For Members Only leading the way with $52,438, or about $10,000 more than last year. The higher funding total puts FMO in a class with A&O Productions and Mayfest as the only groups receiving more than $50,000 from SAFB.

“We proved this year that we’re the caliber group we used to be,” said Michael Blake, FMO’s coordinator-elect and a Medill sophomore.

Blake said FMO’s funding success came as a result of improved planning that allowed the group to bring in high-profile guests such as Cedric the Entertainer.

“We brought people who would bring people,” Blake said. “We sold out our events and SAFB noticed that. When you put hard work in, you’ll be noticed.”

Before FMO’s organization and programming declined several years ago, Goodall said, the group had been accustomed to receiving more than $50,000 annually.

“It’s a function of good leadership and a return of FMO’s presence on campus providing quality programming,” he said.

Other groups that will experience drastic funding increases include Alianza, Asian American Advisory Board, Chinese Students Association and Muslim-cultural Students Association, with the figures for Alianza and CSA more than doubling last year’s allocation.

Alianza President Edith Rivera said the figure is misleading in her group’s case as Alianza has been allotted an additional $10,000 in past Fall Quarter supplemental funding cycles to fund its largest event, the Comedy Beatdown.

“(Receiving the funds) is still a big deal because it shows a precedent for our organization that we were given the funds in the spring instead of in the fall,” said Rivera, a Speech junior.

Like Blake, Rivera attributes her group’s funding increase – from $14,046 last year to $29,279 – to stronger leadership and organization within the group, especially when planning events funded by SAFB-allocated money.

Alan Fu, AAAB’s chairman, said his group’s success also came from attracting the masses.

“We sold out the movie screenings we had because they appealed to not only Asian-American students, but the whole Northwestern community,” said Fu, a Weinberg junior.

He attributed the wide-scale rise in cultural group funding to the enthusiasm of NU’s underclassmen.

“The freshman and sophomore classes seem to be much more interested in the cultural group scene,” Fu said. “They have become the executive boards of all these clubs.”

AAAB also gained $2,166 in funding after asking Senate for more money last week.

Though Hillel Cultural Life is the one group whose spring funding slightly decreased after SAFB’s recommendations, Senate last week increased their total by $5,000 after an appeal by group leaders.

Blake said although the importance of cultural groups has not changed, the widespread funding increases represent a greater appreciation for these groups on campus.

“(Cultural groups) have grown and taken their programming to the next level, and when you do that, people notice you more,” he said. “Our campus is starting to realize the impact and beauty of cultural groups in the community.”