At the end of last semester, the Undergraduate Student Senate Allocations Committee seemed to be in a jam.

With spring semester remaining, the committee allocated about 98 percent of its total budget — about $215,750.

Under the Allocations Committee’s guidelines, a group requesting funds for a conference is given no more than $1,000. The rest of the money must come from the group’s own fundraising efforts.

Although the dates have not been scheduled, Allocations has released some of the events it has funded for this semester: – College Republicans Ben Shapiro- — $6,420 – Harambee Open Mics for 2006-2007 academic year — $4,616 – Commuter and Off Campus Student Organization COSO Coffee Hours — $966 – American Marketing Association National Conference — $1,000 – Kent African Student Association African Night — $14,923 – Financial Management Association Motion City Soundtrack — $31,940 – Circle K National Conference — $1,000 – Psychology Club National Conference — $1,000 – KSU National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Sheryl Lee Ralph — $11,767 – Inter-Greek Programming Board Ryan Cabrera — $21,069

Sean Groves, senator of business and finance, said that because Kent State is an academic environment, much of committee’s budget goes toward educational conferences and workshops. Last semester, $6,000 was allocated to conferences.

Some of the larger allocations went to the Kent State ice hockey team, which received more than $10,000 to allow undergraduate students to attend games for free, and to the Financial Management Association, which will sponsor a concert by Motion City Soundtrack this semester.

The Inter-Greek Programming Board, NAACP, Kent African Student Association and Black United Students also received more than $10,000 of Allocations money.

The most money

The largest sum went to BUS, which received about 30 percent of the entire budget, totaling more than $63,000.

The group was given more than $10,000 for speakers from the FX channel’s “Black. White.” show, and an additional $5,000 was allocated for its Renaissance Ball and Pageant. The rest of the allocations went to the organization’s Homecoming Comedy Show.

Section three of the Allocations Committee’s 2006-2007 guidelines says in order to receive funds, the group must be a student organization registered with the Center for Student Involvement, Kent Campus and Kent State. In addition, a majority of the group’s members must be undergraduates, and graduate students can’t occupy the president and treasurer positions. The guidelines also say all groups receiving funding must have an open membership policy and can’t include restrictive membership clauses. Groups with restrictive membership clauses, however, are eligible for limited funding if the event is on campus and open to the entire student body. All allocated funds must benefit the student body in some way. More information on Allocation’s guidelines can be found at www.uss.kent.edu/uss/doc-view.asp?did=26617. —Source: Allocations Committee’s 2006-2007 guidelines

“BUS puts the comedy show on every year, so of course we gave them funding for that,” Groves said.

He explained that the organization received funding for three separate events because they put in separate requests.

Spring schedule

Despite the apparent monetary drought, Groves said the budget is in good shape.

According to Allocations’ 2006-2007 guidelines, a group seeking funding for conferences or workshops must turn in request forms four weeks prior to the event. Request forms for other events, such as concerts or dances, must be turned in six weeks ahead of time.

“Many of the groups that received funding in the last month and a half of the fall semester are putting on the events in the spring,” Groves said.

According to the December budget report, 11 events that received funding last semester are actually taking place this spring.

Groves said with so many events already scheduled for this semester, the $4,500 left over in the budget doesn’t worry him. Most groups don’t or can’t wait until spring semester to request funds for an event, he said.

Payback

Groves said he is resting easy because Allocations will begin to collect on leftover moneys from events that were over-allocated.

Approximately $48,000 was initially budgeted for BUS’s Homecoming Comedy Show, but Judy Ripple, business manager for the Center of Student Involvement, said so far she’s only totaled about $36,000 in receipts from the event.

When the organization turned in a request for the money, it did not have an act under contract for the comedy show. BUS programmer Carla Smith said any group sponsoring a program is prohibited from signing contracts without the committee first allocating funds. A cheaper price is then negotiated and usually, Smith said, they can get the best deal.

The unused funds and event income will total nearly $12,500, Ripple said. And with an additional return from BUS’s Renaissance Ball and Pageant, as well as $100 to $200 from a few other gr

“I just have to wait for the bills to hit,” she said.

Contact student politics reporter Amadeus Smith at [email protected].