By Corbin Hosler, Multimedia Editor
Funding still is available for campus organizations that didn’t receive the money they needed through the allotment process.
Student Senate has about $1,000 available in this semester’s rolling appropriations fund, which is used to pay for items and events that organizations can’t afford. Any new or established campus organization is eligible to receive cash through the fund.
“It’s a loosely-structured fund, even for organizations that aren’t yet officially recognized or haven’t gotten started,” said Sen. Neil Cooley (sophomore-at-large). “We funded the OCU Quidditch team that is getting started on campus this semester.”
Each organization has a senator assigned to represent them. Senators meet with their respective organizations at the beginning of the semester and are available to help write Senate bills on the group’s behalf, Cooley said.
If a group doesn’t know who their representative is, they can call or visit the SGA office to set up a meeting with any senator.
“There’s nothing that says another senator can’t write the bill for you,” Cooley said.
The complete process can take up to a month after a group contacts a senator, Kayla Masnek, SGA secretary of finance, said earlier this month.
“It’s typically two to three weeks before they actually see the money in their account,” she said.
Senators announced at their Nov. 23 meeting that it now only will take 10 days before legislation is presented on the floor to Student Senate.
If organizations have an unforeseen expense, their senator can present their bill as an emergency, which requires a Senate vote before the bill can be heard. The process allows a bill to be voted on a week or two faster than it otherwise would be.
Kameron Uzoma was in such a situation earlier this fall.
“We needed a spotlight for the OCU’s Got Talent show,” said the Black Student Association president. “We told them how much money we had raised doing car washes and from there, they wrote the bill and gave us the money.”
While organizations can request money through the appropriations fund, they are encouraged to request funding through organizational allotments, which are awarded every semester, Masnek said.
The deadline to apply for Spring 2011 allotments originally was Oct. 29, but organization leaders can apply late by calling SGA officials at 208-5221. Organizations applying late won’t be given top funding priorities like last year, Masnek said.
Contributing: Amanda Alfanos, Editor-in-Chief
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