It’s important to us that the way we spend your Student Fee dollars is responsible, intentional, and transparent.

How are our funds broken down?

  • Definition: restricted funds that are provided to us by the Student Fee Board every year; we must follow the guidelines of the Student Fee Board

    This is broken down into the:

    Operational Sub-Budget: “authorized spending” by the Executive Branch and not require further legislation by the Assembly and shall minimally consist of the following:

    • Holds on funds for the Unrestricted Account or any of its sub-accounts for anticipated fixed expenses.

    • General office supplies including , but not limited to, paper, ink/toner, tape, paper clips, thumb tacks, and staples.

    • Wages and benefits as enumerated in the Budgetary Policy.

    • The Presidential and Speaker of the Assembly Discretionary funds for each academic semester and a summer fund.

    Show-Cause: shall require further legislation by the Assembly and shall minimally consist of the following:

    • Percentage controls for allocation of spendable funds, which shall include, but not be limited to: Internal Spending and its sub-elements; External Spending and its sub-elements; Departmental and Committee breakdown of expected expenses; All major UPUA proposed initiatives.

  • Definition: unrestricted funds that are raised for the UPUA through donations from outsiders (such as alumni on Giving Tuesday); goes towards things like retreats/internal events/AIG weekend

How does your money fund our organization’s actions on campus?

‘22-’23 Student Fee Board Representatives from the UPUA:

  • Nora O’Toole (UPUA President)

  • Giselle Concepcion (UPUA Vice President)

  • Zion Sykes (UPUA At-Large Representative)

  • Sophia Carpinteyro (UPUA At-Large Representative)

 

What is the Student Initiated Fee?

The Fee is used to better student life at University Park. Each student fee allocation generally fits into one of four broad categories: student activities, services, facilities, and recreation. The Student Fee Board gives students a broad authority to determine how their Student Fees are being spent at University Park and to allocate Fee funding to activities or resources which will have the greatest impact on student life. The fee is managed by a Fee Board annually. The guiding statement for what is covered by the Student Initiated Fee is what supports the “out-of-classroom experience”.

You can find the annual Student Initiated Fee in your tuition statements as its own line item.

History of the Student Initiated Fee

At the time of the creation of the Student Fee Board, the University charged three Student Fees in addition to tuition: the Information Technology Fee, the Student Facilities Fee, and the Student Activity Fee. The administration of these three fees varied greatly, each having its own history. For example, although students had minimal involvement with the administration of the Information Technology Fee, students had direct input on how the Student Activity Fee funds were utilized, along with input on policies, procedures, and campus tier levels. The University President has since folded the Information Technology Fee into tuition, and the Student Facilities Fee and Student Activity Fee are combined into the Student Initiated Fee.

What does the Student Fee Board do?

In the 2016-2017 academic year, the inaugural University Park Student Fee Board was formed. There are two Fee Boards at the University – one for Commonwealth Campus students and another for University Park students. The University Park Student Fee Board is responsible for determining the Student Initiated Fee (SIF) at University Park. The Board hears dozens of allocation requests from various administrative entities and student organizations such as the student governments, Homecoming, Student Programming Association (SPA), and the University Park Allocation Committee (UPAC).

 

Who is on the Student Fee Board?

The Fee Board is made entirely of undergraduate and graduate students. The UP Student Fee Board is comprised of 12 voting members. The President of both the University Park Undergraduate Association (UPUA) as well as the Graduate and Professional Student Association (GPSA) are members of the Board,  and each appoints additional members. The UPUA President appoints three members, while the GPSA President appoints two. The final members of the board are five At-Large members who are selected through an application and interview process held each spring semester. The diverse composition of the Board allows for collaboration and deliberation on allocation decisions.

The Board also contains four non-voting members including designees from the Chair of UPAC, the Vice President for Student Affairs, the Vice President for Business and Finance, and the Executive Vice President and Provost.

What is the process of setting the Student Fee amount each year?

The Student Fee Board hears proposals from administrative offices, such as University Health Services (UHS) and the Gender Equity Center (GEC), and from student organizations from approximately November through February. The Fee Board is then responsible for deliberating on these proposals and recommending a fee amount. The Fee Board develops a presentation for the University’s Vice President for Student Affairs and Vice President for Finance and Business (CFO) about the recommended fee breakdown. This is then brought to the Board of Trustees to review and vote on, and the fee is officially approved in July in preparation for the school year.

How does the Student Initiated Fee ultimately fund UPUA’s projects and advocacy?

Every year, the UPUA is responsible for reporting on how our organization spent money allocated by the Student Fee Board each year to prove that we are supporting the out-of-classroom experience.

Every three years, the UPUA is able to propose a budget increase. Currently, the Student Fee Board allocates $139,628.55. We must demonstrate large utilization of our budget over previous years, plans for expansion, and data to prove it is necessary in order to obtain a budget increase.

What does the UPUA budget look like this year?

Below is an outline of our total Type-40 Budget: