The University of Wisconsin Student Services Finance Committee met to discuss ways to improve the committee Thursday.
Rep. David Luján spoke on how to make more efficient guidelines for the committee for the next 20-30 years, particularly with regards to the application process for funding for organizations. Currently, SSFC is only able to handle funding for about 15 organizations, Lujan said.
Associated Students of Madison Funding Advisor Abbie Wagaman said the process for organizations to receive funding can be complicated. Organizations need to send the SSFC midyear and year end reports to ensure funding is used properly.
SSFC discussed the status of the General Student Services Fund which funds salaries, food, equipment and other resources for 15 student organizations. Grant money cannot provide funding for these resources, according to Wagaman. The committee discussed making purchasing with GSSF funding easier or dissolving the GSSF.
GSSF funding usually covers gaps in resources covered by UW and for long term funding, Rep. AJ Butler said. Grant funding is used for short term needs and supplementing the student experience.
The GSSF can pay student salaries for officer positions which is something other funding sources cannot do. Butler said GSSF funding can provide a livelihood for many students, especially for larger organizations like Sex Out Loud and PAVE.
Lujan said removing student salaries from GSSF funding is not an issue.
To replace funding lost in dissolving the GSSF, SSFC would provide student organizations with more grant money.
Rep. Rianna Mukherjee said the committee needed to create a better, more comprehensive application for GSSF funding. The committee also discussed changing the application programming from Qualtrics to an alternate system.
The limited number of organizations the GSSF funds allows SFFC to work more closely with the organizations, according to Luján. But, SSFC should still look to expand the GSSF.
The committee voted to continue discussion on the GSSF at their next meeting. SSFC next meets Thursday, March 2.
