ASASUD voted to approve over $50,000 for student organizations on Friday and discussed future applications of the facilities fee and changes to funding request procedures.
PAB changed their initial request from $48,544.56 to $47,833.16, with one vote against approval of total funds by Sen. Dustin Volz, of Barrett, the Honors College. Funds will be used to put on activities for the Downtown campus throughout the semester, including movie showings in Civic Space Park.
Innovative Breaks, a campus organization dedicated to service in Arizona and other states, was approved for $3,710. Innovative Breaks will send students to Lake Mead, Nev., to clean up, and afterwards students will be taken to Circus Circus Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas for a comedy show. Students will be required to pay $50 for the trip.
Sen. Andrew Schmiedeler, of the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, voiced concerns over use of the funds. Questioning why ASASUD should fund students’ spring break activities, he alone voted against approval of funds.
After both funding requests were approved with little opposition, Volz voiced his concerns about the amount of money being distributed this early in the semester.
ASASUD President Christian Vasquez said the budget for Spring 2011 is almost finalized. Vasquez also reminded senators that, with money rolled over from Fall 2010, there will be more money available to go to campus organizations requesting funds.
Vasquez also presented changes to the funding requests procedures.
“Now there is a line by line break down of funds,” Vasquez said. “Campus (organizations) are required to notify us if they don’t use the funds or do not use all of it. It’s now about accountability.”
ASASUD Vice President Jessica Abercrombie presented the status of the Facilities Fee Board. Abercrombie said the board hopes to build a stand-alone building next to the Lincoln Family Downtown YMCA. The first floor would be a continuation of the YMCA, but ASASUD hopes to make the second floor and above accessible to ASU students only.
While discussing the implementation of a small leisure pool on the roof, Abercrombie reminded the Senate and observers that the facilities fee is about creating student space.
Sen. Cailyn Bradley, of the Walter Cronkite School, agreed with the plans for the facilities fee.
“Most of my constituents are leaving downtown because they don’t offer the same amenities as Tempe,” Bradley said.
Freshman senator and urban and metropolitan studies major Daiyaan Colbert mentioned the danger of excessive fees during an open discussion.
“A big part of our constituents are commuter students,” Colbert said. “We can’t keep stockpiling them with fees.”
Additionally, a Senate seat has opened on ASASUD. Vasquez and Abercrombie urged senators to reach out to constituents in the coming weeks in order to quickly fill the position.
Other business from Fall 2010 included discussions over senator stipends and the procedure for granting them. Abercrombie presented a chart to the Senate with senatorial duty breakdowns in order to systemically keep track of senators who do or do not complete duties such as mandatory meet and greets with constituents and deans, as well as office hours.
Contact the reporter at crcruz1@asu.edu.
