The Student Services Finance Committee held a budget hearing on Monday night for the Multicultural Student Coalition and Atheists, Humanists and Agnostics.
MCSC’s rocky budget proposal for the fiscal year 2019 included emphasis on core programming, general budgetary needs, supportive programming and service division programs but did not provide a finalized comprehensive budget for SSFC to vote on.
MCSC representative Ian Oyler prefaced committee questioning by presenting the current budgetary proposal uses examples and outlines from past budget proposals.
Rep. Jeremy Swanson of SSFC responded by asking how much of the eligibility application they presented was used from past budget proposals.
Oyler said a majority of the current budget proposal was taken from old budgets, and a finalized budget has not yet been decided.
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“We [SSFC] don’t have a sense of how MCSC is running the programs, and so we cannot determine whether or not you’re eligible to receive funding” Rep. Zaakir Abdul-Wahid said.
Rep. Max Goldfarb asked if MCSC had notified groups, such as Sex Out Loud, of their plans to collaborate with them closely in the following year.
Oyler responded, “We have not gotten full collaboration from these specific areas, but we would like to seek a coalition with these programs in the future.”
By not notifying these groups of their involvement within MCSC, the organization was violating SSFC bylaws, Goldfarb said.
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Vice Chair Kristi Parsons then inquired if the programs MCSC listed from previous budget proposals are planned to be implemented in future years, or if the programs were exclusively examples.
Oyler said MCSC had every intention to continue these programs as their organization progressed.
Eken Ikegwuani, another MCSC representative, said their organization not only created a space for underrepresented communities, but also formed a coalition of diverse student organizations on campus.
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Earlier that evening, SSFC listened to AHA’s budget hearing, as well. President and vice president of AHA proposed a $471.50 decrease in funds for fiscal year 2019 which will be voted on at the SSFC meeting on Thursday.
Veterans, Educators and Traditional Students’ budget for fiscal year 2019 was passed at $33,541. Likewise, the Wisconsin Black Student Union’s budget for fiscal year 2019 was passed at $58,593.
Abdul-Wahid proceeded to ask if MCSC would be able to create a working outline of their proposal for the fiscal year 2019 before the next SSFC meeting.
MCSC said they would be able to do so but SSFC refused to vote on the proposal until then.
SSFC requested MCSC provide a working outline of their proposal for the fiscal year 2019 before Nov. 13, the next SSFC meeting.
