Student groups will have one last chance to petition for extramoney at tonight’s Associated Student Government Senate meeting,which marks the end of Spring Quarter funding.
Senators also will decide whether to confirm three recentappointments to the ASG Executive Board and are slated to debate abill calling for a resource center for lesbian, gay, bisexual andtransgender students.
ASG President Mike Fong announced Sunday that former ASGAcademic Vice President Tamara Kagel had been appointed to serve asstudent services vice president. Kagel, a Communication junior,also ran for ASG president this year.
Fong, a Weinberg junior, also chose International StudiesResidential College Sen. Noora Lori as campus public relationschairwoman and Allison Hall Sen. Jane Lee as external relationschairwoman.
Two-thirds of senators present at roll call must approve allappointments. If senators do not, the positions will be vacant andExecutive Board must appoint someone else.
But Fong said he expects senators to quickly approve theappointments.
“There has never been an Executive Board appointment that hasn’tbeen confirmed by the Senate as far as I can remember,” Fong said.”I don’t see a reason to worry.”
But 2003 Election Commission Chairman Avery Maron said theremight “be a vocal minority who want to make their point” thatKagel’s selection was unfair, even though a majority of senatorswill want to confirm the appointments and put elections behindthem.
“I think the Executive Board let personal feelings get in themix instead of being completely honest,” said Maron, aCommunication junior and senator for Bobb and McCulloch halls.
After the confirmations, students for the second Senate meetingin a row will have the opportunity to appeal recommendations madeby the Student Activities Finance Board about how much moneystudent groups will receive for the 2003-04 academic year.
The $916,585.71 that SAFB doles out to groups comes from theStudent Activities Fee, which all undergraduates pay. Each year 5percent of total student group funding is set aside for theamendment pool. Only $16,321.71 remains and 10 groups have yet tohave the opportunity to present their cases.
Senators will vote on SAFB’s recommended funding allocations forCaribNation, NAYO African-American Dance Ensemble, Hillel CulturalLife, South Asian Students Alliance, Dolphin Show, Habitat forHumanity, Taiwanese-American Students Club, National Pan-HellenicCouncil and two co-sponsored events: CelebrAsia and NUPerspectives.
Few of the student groups expressed plans to petition for extramoney. Some group leaders who said they were unsure aboutpetitioning did not know the exact amounts to request.
Hillel Cultural Life Sen. Alexander Lurie, a Weinberg freshman,said leaders of his group will ask senators to grant Hillel anamount less than $5,000 “to bolster programming.”
TASC will request $1,830 to fund a Spring Quarter speaker, grouppresident George Chou said. SAFB recommended the group receive$8,740 instead of the requested $22,490.
“I think the financial board would like to give us more money,”said Chou, a McCormick junior. “The problem is that there are a lotof groups who deserve more money as well.”
TASC partners with the Chinese Students Association to put on aCelebrAsia event during Winter Quarter, and this year SAFBrecommended that the groups’ co-sponsorship receive about $15,025of the requested $17,295. Nevertheless, Chou said the groups arehappy with the allocation and probably will not ask for more.
Representatives of Interfraternity Council, NPHC, MulticulturalCouncil and Panhellenic Association co-sponsor the speaker seriesNU Perspectives and are able to petition tonight. NPHC PresidentGeorge Spencer, a Communication junior, said requesting extrafunding was “brought up as a possibility” but said leaders wereunsure for how much money to petition.
Representatives for Habitat for Humanity, NAYO and NPHC said thegroups will not ask for extra funds. CaribNation’s president saidthe group will ask for fall supplemental funding.
The meeting begins at 6 p.m. tonight in the Northwestern roomsat Norris University Center and is open to the NU community.
