One of University of Wisconsin’s largest student organizations requested more than $70,000 for the 2013-14 fiscal year from Student Services Finance Committees at their Monday night meeting.
F.H. King financial director Sunil Misra said the group coordinates a number of events and programs on and off-campus including a student farm, harvest handouts and compost and rooftop garden programs, requested a decreased budget of $71,243.68.
Misra said the group used 94.7 percent of their allotted budget in the previous year due to a decrease in spending and a special attention to cutting unnecessary costs, adding it was not because of the “decreased importance” of the organization.
“[The decrease in funding] is not a product of failure or shrinkage of interest … that number is decreasing because we have cut funding where it is not needed,” Misra said.
SSFC representatives voiced concern over the amount of funding allotted toward the Growing Season Kickoff, a spring event hosted by F.H. King, and whether catering was a necessary expense.
F.H. King is a three-season operation; they have a fall and spring event, as well as the Growing Season Kickoff in late spring, Parker Jones, F.H. King outreach coordinator, said.
“The purpose of the Growing Season Kickoff is to make a summer kickoff push,” Jones said. “The key thing is bringing students out to the garden. Get them out to the garden, get them outside, usually combined with an educational portion.”
F.H. King does serve some of their own products such as kale and other vegetables that have been harvested and kept throughout the winter, but because of the lengthy educational portion they feel the need to supplement the attendees with catered food, Jones said.
Growing Season Kickoff has event insurance, and SSFC members were unsure if this was a necessary expense. Misra and Jones said any event hosting more than 50 people required event insurance, which added $168 to the budget.
SSFC representatives also questioned F.H. King’s new addition of two Urban Egg assistants, however Jones said the position had been overworked in previous years and F.H. King had determined it was necessary to add another position.
SSFC will decide on F.H. King’s budget on Thursday and also hold a budget hearing for Campus Women’s Center.
