Club delegates were waiting outside of a conference room in the University Student Union’s Sol Center last Wednesday to ask the Associated Students Finance Committee for a share of the extra $67,000 that Cal State Northridge received from enrollment fees.
One by one, they pitched project ideas and addressed the committee’s fiscal concerns.
A request for funding that was approved, and will be voted on by the A.S. Senate on Tuesday, was a Mission Matadors initiative to buy 29 banners bearing the CSUN name, which would then be hung on light poles and down from the roof of the Oviatt Library.
Kevin Mojaradi-Stenke, who handles marketing for the group, showed the committee photos of these locations, which were altered to include the crimson-colored banners and their black letters – “Cal State Northridge” on light pole banners and “CSUN” on the library’s.
Mojaradi-Stenke said the banners will hopefully inspire within students a sense of school spirit.
Cost of the banners, kits and their installation is $11,000. The committee approved $12,000. Both the banner and kit purchases would come with a three-year warranty.
Finance committee members also decided to recommend that $9,000 be spent so that A.S. officers and staff workers could go to a leadership retreat and banquet in early 2007. The Senate will vote on that expenditure tomorrow.
General Manager David Crandall said his staff is “required” to attend retreats, which they are compensated for. He corrected himself and said, “They’re strongly encouraged to attend.”
Director of Finance Adam Haverstock asked delegates requesting the money why the restaurant Islands in Burbank was chosen for the banquet, and not the University Student Union’s Grand Salon.
This would be cheaper, especially if dinner is not included, he said.
Islands offered a fair rate considering the number of people expected, which may be 160 students and university administrators, said A.S. Program Assistant Rachel Murphy.
For the leadership retreat, $2,500 would go toward two days’ worth of food, notebooks and posters. For the dinner banquet, $4,500 would go to $18 meals for students, $33 meals for administrators and guests, a DJ, decorations, and $2,000 would go toward awards and trophies.
Haverstock asked if the $2,000 could be reduced, but was told it was low enough as it is.
Crandall said $1,800 was spent on awards handed out to A.S. members last year, so the extra $200 is a cushion.
These awards were for categories such as “Honorary Member” and “Member of the Year,” and graduating members received $35 medallions, he said.
Aside from funding from outside sources, A.S. will bare most of the cost of these events.
Representing the CSUN Greens, John Paul Vera came into the conference room to talk about a speaking event called “The Supershow,” which will be held on Earth Day 2007.
“Earth Day to me is every day, and the Greens want to make CSUN unique,” Vera said.
The Armenian Club and the Chicano/a Studies department have already pledged funding, the band booked for “The Supershow” might bring their own amplifiers, and the CSUN Greens would be willing to take the remaining $600 in their budget to pay for the room.
But $6,000 is still needed for to pay for another speaker, Jello Biafra, and for promotion of the event.
Later on, a motion was made to recommend that $1,400 be provided for either of these purposes, but the motion was defeated. Ultimately, $1,000 was passed by a 3 to 1 vote.
