St. Bonaventure University
Photo: David Scibilia/The Bona Venture
BY GENEVIEVE BLUMBERG, STAFF WRITER
The Budget Committee of the Student Government Association created the 2024-2025 budget for new and existing clubs last month, allocating funds to campus clubs.
The committee functions off of a fixed budget; they have a set amount of money to divide between a growing number of clubs.
Aahana Kidambi, senior biology major and treasurer for the SGA, said there were setbacks to getting club budgets out this school year.
“Yearly budgets typically go out as soon as the committee can meet,” said Kidambi. “This year we had some changes in the committee, I was appointed to my position and it took it a little longer to get that out. Usually, they go out within the first month of school.”
Clubs submit budget request forms at the end of the school year. The budget committee then allocates the money to all campus clubs based on need and available funds.
“The primary deciding factor is what comes to us through those budget request forms,” said Kidambi. “We also evaluate if the clubs are meeting their requirements within the SGA: showing up to meetings and doing their required community service hours.”
The budget committee, including Kidambi, separates the money provided by the university and distributes it to clubs and all four classes.
“The university gives a certain amount of money to our committee at the beginning of the year,” said Kidambi. “We have to take that pot of money and make that work for all the clubs, all the classes, and any grant requests.”
As the number of clubs grows, the amount of money that existing clubs receive may change. Kidambi said she could not discuss the amount of money provided to the committee or how it was distributed.
“As the years go on we’re seeing an increase in the number of clubs on campus. We have to account for that increase with the same pot of money to distribute amongst all of the clubs. In order to make that happen, sometimes we do have to make changes to accommodate all the clubs,” said Kidambi.
However, Kidambi said that at the beginning of the year, the budget committee sets aside money for grant requests that clubs can submit at the beginning of the semester.
“Every semester clubs can apply for grants and we set aside a certain amount of money for that reason,” said Kidambi. “If a club were to receive their money and something comes up and they demonstrate a need for additional funds, we do have a little bit of resources that we can tap into on a case by case basis.”
According to Kidambi, with limited funds, the SGA may not always be in a position to grant the entire request.
“We try to allocate funds to everyone who asks, it’s more so whether we are able to meet the entire quantity or not,” said Kidambi.
Carolyn Schwab, senior health science major and founder/president of the Power Yoga Club, said she has not had any problems with the SGA budget provided to her club.
“I have not needed to request more money as the SGA has done a great job giving us the budget we need for Power Yoga Club,” said Schwab. “Jenna Keppel has done a great job helping me buy the things I need for my club with my budget.”
blumbegc24@bonaventure.edu
