Student Services Finance Committee Rep. Carl Fergus resigned from his position at a meeting Monday night.

Having served in all three leadership positions on the committee since October 2007, Fergus said in his letter to the committee — which he read at the beginning of the meeting — that Chancellor Biddy Martin’s approval of Wisconsin Student Public Interest Research Group’s contract for this year on Nov. 19 was all he was waiting for to finish his work and resign.

“With the chancellor’s decision concerning WISPIRG’s contract now completed, my work as chair [from last year] has wrapped up. I feel that I have fulfilled my purpose on SSFC and am stepping aside to allow for someone else to take my place,” Fergus said.

SSFC Chair Brandon Williams said Fergus’ resignation is a terrible loss to the committee, as he has been a tremendous leader for the last few years.

SSFC Vice Chair Michael Romensko agreed, saying Fergus was a valuable asset to the committee, especially with his strong institutional memory, but he also said he felt the committee would get along fine without him.

Fergus included advice to the newer members of the committee in his resignation.

“Your first responsibility is to the students. This does not mean you should pass everything through, but instead means you need to think hard about striking a balance between the levels of programs and services offered, and the final number on every student’s tuition bill,” Fergus said.

He said the committee should take pride in their work and take from the experience leadership and critical thinking skills.

Fergus added he will be looking for different ways to get involved and will serve as a resource for the Associated Students of Madison interns. He said he hopes to be a part of some of the open committees within ASM and get on the United Council.

Fergus left following his resignation speech, after which Williams addressed two student organization budget adjustments. He reported to the committee that the budget for Supporting Peers in Laid-back Listening is under review.

“They messed up some numbers and are working with our financial specialist to fix it,” Williams said.

Also, the budget for Greater University Tutoring Services was amended in a vote of 11-0-1 to $145,364.34, with $16,000 taken from the tuition remission line item.

This was initially used to help supplement the tuition of the two graduate students, but according to Williams, segregated fees cannot be used for financial aid as it violates SSFC bylaws.