February is the time of year when the whole college looks forward to next year. Academic advising day is quickly approaching; requiring all returning students to look at what they've done and at what they hope to accomplish. It is also the time of year when everyone looks to their budgets. The trustees meet and decide on any necessary tuition increases, while on a smaller scale, every student activity makes its request for money to the Student Government.
This is an important role of SGA, one which they take very seriously and one which benefits every organization. It is yet another example of student involvement in policy decisions at this school and something which we should all take pride in.
Over the past week and a half, the members of Class III organizations learned that nearly one fifth of our collective budget would need to be cut. At first we were upset, to say the least. There seemed to be a serious lack of communication between the SGA and the SAEC (Student Activities Executive Council which is made up of leaders of Class III organizations). Two new groups were being added to our budget pool (WPIR and the Music Association) and to try and reduce the funds (from roughly $210,000 this year to $200,000 next year) seemed difficult.
Last Thursday (February 1st), members of SAEC and SGA met and were able to have a good discussion of our options. They seem to be limited. First, the money collected by social fees will probably decrease next year as the senior class has around 700 members and 650 freshmen are expected to enroll. Second, SGA decided to put more money into reserve in next year's budget. This reserve is used by organizations for special and emergency funding and it makes sense to put money aside for currently unanticipated future expenses.
There is little that SGA can do on its own, its hands are tied with a fixed income and expenses that are higher than income. In last week's Newspeak there was some discussion of two other options which have recently come up in the Senate. One calls for a transfer of two expenses, the Assistant Dean for Student Activities salary and service contracts on the Perreault film projectors (totalling roughly $22,000), from the social fee to the Institute's budget. There are strong feelings against that proposal among the administrators of the school, because the money just isn't there either.
This brings us to the second proposal, which will hit us all in the wallet, an increase in the social fee. The proposal would tack around $20 onto the current $100 paid by all students as part of their tuition bills. In order to convince the trustees that such an increase is necessary, student support is needed. Last November a petition was circulated in regards to this increase, but student response was very small.
A 20% decrease in funding to Class III organizations won't result in a direct 20% decrease in programming on campus, but there might be a few changes. This isn't the time to start sounding alarms, it is the time for Class III to consider what can be cut and for students to show their support for the programs provided on campus. The increase in the social fee is something which Newspeak and the other Class III organizations support.
Campus programming is something which we take very seriously and the members of SAEC feel that we have planned a great year. Events on campus are offered for free or for a very minimal cost to all students and we hope that this can continue. Your support will be greatly appreciated, so invest in the community!
Give feedback: newspeak@wpi.wpi.edu