The Associated Student Government Senate allocated $10,000 as part of the New Student Organization Support Fund at Wednesday’s meeting. ELEL Dance Group, which specializes in Ethiopian and Eritrean traditional dances, received the highest allocation.
ASG’s NSOSF allocates money to new student organizations, which must meet the qualifications of having been active for two years or less and having a Student Organization Finance Office account.
NSOSF previously allocated $5,000 each quarter to new student organizations. This quarter, however, ASG added an additional $5,000 to the fund, bringing the total fund to $10,000. Twenty-three new student organizations requested funding at the Funding Senate, compared to the 14 groups in Spring Quarter.
During the first “add” period of the funding process, each student organization was given two minutes to present the funding they would like to receive, as well as additional time to answer questions from senators regarding their requests.
Student organizations requested funding for food, travel fees, new sporting equipment, subscription and registration fees, costumes, and planning future events. Senators were asked to motion for the amount they wanted to allocate to each group. Senators then voted on the proposed allocation.
Following the “add” period, ASG senators exceeded the funding limit of $10,000 by $900 and transitioned into their “cut” period, when the Senate decided which funds previously allocated to groups should be cut to meet their NSOSF budget.
Senators decided to cut $450 from the original allocation for new student-run reality TV show “Unscripted Love” and to cut funding completely from the groups who were not physically present at the meeting, leaving $250 left to reduce.
The groups that did not show up, and therefore received no funding, were Hawai’i Club, Greek American Legacy Association and Leukemia and Lymphoma Society at Northwestern.
Additionally, senators cut Ethiopian-Eritrean Student Association’s funding by $50, EighthDay Theatre’s by $50 and Open Democracy Undergraduate’s by $150 to meet their budget. The final “add” period is the last stage of the funding process, but with no money left to add and no senators voting to cut additional money from groups, the Funding Senate came to an end.
Overall, 20 student groups received funding, with ELEL Dance Group receiving the top dollar amount of $1,176.03. “Unscripted Love” and EESA also walked away with four-figure allocations, with the former receiving $1,150 and the latter $1,135.
After about five hours of deliberations, NU Club Gymnastics received $479, Girl Gains received $178, Safe Security received $600, All In received $568, NU GeoClub received $290, Open Democracy Undergraduate received $350, Black Poetry Society received $250, Cubing Club received $200, Off the Ball received $300, Music Tasting Club received $200, EighthDay Theatre received $538.97, Housing Security Collaborative received $460, Reflections Repertory Company received $700, 180 Degrees Consulting received $150, NU Mechanical Keyboard Club received $300, Nigerian Student Organization received $275 and Starlight received $700.
Communication junior Ananya Paul, executive producer of “Unscripted Love,” expressed that although the group didn’t get funding for all aspects of what they originally came in requesting, she is happy with the amount they received in the end.
Paul said her organization plans to use the funds toward their Spring Quarter production of a reality dating show, where they will be on set for eight consecutive weeks. She added that this funding is important for students interested in pursuing entertainment to be able to experience the “unscripted side of the entertainment industry” they will need in later jobs.
“Because we don’t have (unscripted) opportunities at Northwestern, I feel like it’s really important for students to get that hands-on experience because it’s really different from all these scripted clubs and classes that we have here,” Paul said. “Cinematography and reality TV is a completely different style of cinematography compared to the scripted shows and movies that we have.”
Weinberg junior and Speaker of the Senate Grace Houren said she felt senators did a great job preparing for Funding Senate, including reviewing student group applications and providing time for senators to email back the groups with questions.
“I think (Funding Senate) was longer and a little bit more tedious than it’s been in the past, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing,” Houren said. “We had a lot more groups, and we gave groups a lot more time to really think through their applications, so we saw a lot of really good asks.”
Before addressing the funding process, ASG Senate voted on two resolutions from the Nov. 13 meeting, both of which passed. The resolutions included a proposal to extend dining hours at Foster-Walker Complex and a plan to address heating issues in the basement of International Studies Residential College.
Additionally, Communication junior and ASG co-Executive Officer of the Justice and Inclusion Committee Malik Rice was sworn in as the new ASG co-President, taking the place of former co-President Ty’Shea Woods, who resigned at the Nov. 13 Senate meeting.
“I’m really excited to take on the role and to immerse myself with the responsibilities and necessary tasks of co-president, and to do it with somebody who I have loved and shared my Northwestern experience with,” Rice said. “I am really just hoping to make this role better for non-men of color.”
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Related Stories:
— ASG introduces new legislation on dining hours and heating issues, prepares for Funding Senate
— ASG Senate distributes $50,000 in SAFC funding appeals
— ASG Senate distributes remaining $1,000 of $30,000 funding budget to student orgs
