The Campus Women’s Center and Wunk Sheek were both denied funding by the Student Services Finance Committee at its meeting Monday.
The Campus Women’s Center — denied funding by a vote of 0-4-4 — was funded for the last two school years; in the 2008-09 fiscal year, it received $84,445 and again received funding for the 2009-10 year totaling $100,582.20.
Wunk Sheek — a group that serves as a communication center for American Indian students on campus and was also previously funded by SSFC — was denied funding by a vote of 0-7-1. It received funding of $100,095.66 for the 2008-09 year and $109,480.73 for the 2009-10 year.
Both groups were denied on the same basis — not having at least 51 percent direct services — and will not receive funding for next year’s activities.
“They failed to meet the direct service requirements; they did not represent the 50 percent-plus one threshold (for direct services),” SSFC Chair Brandon Williams said.
Williams added Wunk Sheek did not meet the direct service requirement either because they did not offer many direct services to students but rather hosted a series of events.
Campus Women’s Center representative Tina Trevi?o-Murphy disagreed with the ruling, arguing the organization provides many services, including support groups, rape crisis centers and condom crawls.
“People can call, e-mail or come in to find out information that wouldn’t normally be available,” Trevi?o-Murphy said.
If any group fails to meet even one of the 19 requirements, it will not receive funding for the next fiscal year. Even though neither Campus Women’s Center nor Wunk Sheek will receive funding from SSFC in the next fiscal year, they are not cut off from other sources of money, according to Williams.
Vets for Vets and the Student Tenant Resource Center also made their plea to SSFC Monday night, hoping SSFC will decide they qualify.
Vets for Vets received $43,334.80 for the 2008-09 academic year and no funding for this year, while the Student Tenant Resource Center is a new organization and has never received funding.
The Vets for Vets organization gives counseling and information for those who are interested in joining the military.
“We have a wide range of experience available,” Vets for Vets President Gerald Kapinos said. “We are open to any student that would like to participate.”
The Student Tenant Resource Union hopes to be the main tenant student organization on campus. They cater specifically to students, pushing for legislation with housing rights groups to create a friendly environment for students and to address issues such as landlord disputes to roommate issues, said Kyle Szarzynski, SSFC member and representative for the Student Tenant Resource Union, who will be unable to vote in the funding decision.
“We hold workshops in dorms and other places around campus in order to educate prospective tenants about their rights and responsibilities,” Szarzynski said.
The eligibility funding decision for both groups will be addressed this Thursday at the next SSFC meeting.
