By Paul TakahashiThe Daily Northwestern
Since 2004, some Northwestern student groups have seen their funding from Associated Student Government skyrocket by as much as 2,000 percent, while others have gradually lost thousands of dollars – all while the number of disagreements between ASG and its financial branch have risen.
The most dramatic success story is that of the Flicker Film Festival, which received only $340 in 2004 during ASG’s spring funding cycle.
On Wednesday, the group received $8,769, an increase of 2,479 percent. The group hosts an annual festival of international films, and in recent years has brought speakers to campus, such as Parker Posey, Rob Cordry and Chazz Palminteri.
This year’s largest funding allotment of $253,337 went to A&0 Productions, a film and entertainment group. In recent years, the group has brought entertainers to campus, such as Kanye West, Dane Cook and Sarah Silverman.
Since 2004, when the group was recommended $209,646, its funding has increased by 20.8 percent.
Mayfest has also seen a steady increase over the four-year span: They had a 9.1 percent increase in funding from ASG between 2004 and 2007, when they were recommended $121,038 and $133,170, respectively.
Mayfest, which organizes programming for Dillo Day, has brought artists, such as Ben Folds and the Wailers, to campus in recent years for the spring event.
“A lot of groups performed well this year, which made this a difficult funding cycle,” said Aneesa Arshad, ASG’s financial vice president and the leader of the Student Activities Finance Board, ASG’s financial arm.
But funding has not increased for all student groups since 2004.
Funding for the College Republicans has decreased by 66 percentage points over the four-year span. This year, the College Republicans received $12,826, down from $37,519 in 2004.
Both ASG and SAFB said the decrease is a result of sub-par programming.
“It’s the content of the organization,” said ASG President Jon Webber, a SESP junior. “We look at the performance of the group and how well their events went last year.”
In contrast, the College Democrats has seen a 26 percent increase over the same period. Arshad, a SESP junior, said the College Democrats’ funding reflects the group’s past events – speakers such as James Carville and a trip to Springfield to see Barack Obama’s official announcement to run for president.
“The Republicans’ programming has not been as strong,” Arshad said.
Alternative Student Breaks also has seen fluctuating funding in recent years. It received $6,150 in both 2004 and 2005, $7,450 in 2006 and $7,250 for 2007. ASB was forced to lobby for more funds after they were recommended for no funds by the SAFB this year.
“We fund based on merit, not cause,” said Arshad, who said the group’s trips during breaks make it so that not all students can participate.
Ultimately, the ASG Senate voted to give ASB some funds despite SAFB’s recommendation. There were 14 such instances of disagreement this year, up from eight instances in 2004. These disagreements exist partially because SAFB can only fund from the Student Activities Fee, a quarterly fee students pay to fund campus activities, Arshad said.
“Senators overwhelmingly agreed with our recommendations,” Arshad said. “The problem was with the amendment pool.
“If we could fund from the Senate amendment pool, we could give more to groups.”Every Northwestern student pays a set amount – $126 this year – toward the Student Activities Fee every year.
This year, ASG allocated about 5.3 percent more than what the SAFB recommended, an increase from 1.6 percent in 2004.
A $30,000 increase in funds collected from the Student Activities Fee helped make this year’s funding pool the largest in NU’s history. On Wednesday, the ASG Senate finished reviewing SAFB’s recommendations and adding to them from the pool, ultimately distributing $902,875 to 44 student organizations.
Reach Paul Takahashi at [email protected].
