Courtesy of The Daily Beacon
SPAC is back: Committee will open process this week after brief pause Cat Trieu
Campus News Editor
Kylie Hubbard
Editor-in-Chief For the last few weeks, the Student Programming Allocation Committee was put on pause. Now, with a plan in motion, the committee will open the process for the Spring semester on Monday. “We’re just ... excited that organizations will be able to receive funding for the spring and that the programming will continue like it normally has,” Owen Flomberg, senior in College Scholars, vice president of membership of Campus Events Board and co-president of ORG, said. Prior to Saturday evening, SPAC temporarily paused, looking at the expenses of certain organizations and events. Funding had been allocated for events planned through Feb. 28, but the rest of the Spring semester has not been allocated. “I think the question came to rise that are we effectively making sure the money is being spent wisely and the right way, so I think right now we are seeing an evolution,” Ovi Kabir, SGA president and senior in political science, said in an interview on Oct. 29. “Right now it is a pause on it, a pause for it to be something new.” As of Saturday night, student leaders have decided to continue the same process for the
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spring semester, but will continue to look at the SPAC process to refine it for next school year. With roughly 500 student organizations on campus, only about 60 organizations apply for SPAC funding each semester, according to Kabir. Regardless, Kabir said SGA is trying to keep student organizations updated throughout the process. “We’ve had these conversations on student programming,” Kabir said. “There really hasn’t been much of an announcement... to the general student (population) because we’ve let any student organization that is applying for the SPAC funding know because they are the ones using it.” “SPAC isn’t a sexy issue, essentially, because it’s numbers but it’s very important,” Kabir added. What is SPAC? SPAC was created to determine how funds from the Student Programming and Services Fee (SPSF) are used and distributed. In order to do this, student organizations apply to receive funding for specific events during each semester, fall and spring. Student programming funds come from the $19.46 charge from each opted-in student. In order to protect students from funding events they do not support, a 2014 Tennessee Legislature request allows students to have two options for deciding how the university spends the money. Students who choose to opt in (option 1) allow the university to use the fee for student programming on campus, and, in turn, those students receive free access or discounted
admission to all student programming such as another extension of that.” Vol Night Long and guest speakers. Students Closed-door meeting held on July 17 who choose to opt out (option 2) tell the univerFollowing the meeting, SPAC was debated sity to use the fee for initiatives and events that amongst student leaders and organizations. On are not student-led. July 17, Vice Chancellor of Student Life Vince Reallocation sends SPAC funds to travel Carilli hosted a closed-door discussion about fund SPAC, prompting outcry from then SGA Chief The SGA Senate took an unanimous straw of Staff Austin Smith. Smith, who was only included in the call to poll in favor of a reallocation of $190,000 from student programming funds to a student orga- help a close friend attend over conference call, nization travel budget on March 6. Student pro- was “disappointed” when he wasn’t originally grammers and numerous SGA Senators were included in the meeting. “Earlier this summer, I had spent several concerned when the straw poll finalized the reallocation following Spring Break. Typically, hours forming the 20 plus committees, includstraw polls are considered a gauge as to the ing SPAC,” Smith said after the July 17 meeting. general climate of an idea. Many did not know “I was told by the SGA President to hold off the details or dollar amount when voting in the on finalizing SPAC because the administration planned to scrap the current committee and straw poll. During a March 27 Senate meeting, an open restructure it.” Once the meeting began, Smith said Carilli town hall provided students the opportunity to voice their concerns. Around 50 students from asked students to not record the conversations various organizations including CEB, Sexual and to keep the conversation between those in Empowerment and Awareness at Tennessee the room. “One of my issues with this is that nearly (SEAT) and the Women’s Coordinating Council every person in the meeting was a student elect(WCC) were present. “The complete lack of consideration for ed by their respective constituents to engage in informing students and certain administrators conversations about student issues,” Smith said. about this change is very troubling,” chair of the “As a student representative, I have nothing to Campus Events Board’s issues committee and hide when it comes to discussing the interests of junior studying political science Dylan Douglas my peers; though I cannot speak for my fellow said. “SPAC funding has been highly politicized student representatives in the room, I do not in the past, and given what was changed (both believe that they do either.” the budget cuts and new procedure changes) and how they changed it, without informing Story continued online anyone affected, I can’t help but feel this is Read more at utdailybeacon.com.
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Monday, November 5, 2018