ASWC voted to increase the student fee by $20 for the 2012-2013 academic year during its senate meeting last Sunday, Feb. 26.
The fee, which is set at $336 for the coming year, is a large climb from this year’s $316 and was raised to adjust for inflation and to address growing club budget demands.
“ASWC as an institution is incredibly dynamic, in that it grows,” Finance Chair senior Fritz Siegert said. “If you adjust for inflation for $316 alone over the past two years you get $334 already.”
Siegert noted that this academic year began with 42 clubs. There are now 63 clubs, all of which require their own individual budgets funded by ASWC and have the ability to draw further funds from the remaining ASWC budget.
“We’re faced with the overwhelming reality that we can’t keep the student fee the same or lower it and expect to maintain the same level of financial support that ASWC covers,” Siegert said.
Three years ago ASWC was asked to pick up responsibility for the majority of campus programming; the result was the creation of WEB. The student fee, however, never reflected this change. According to Siegert, a large part of the decision to increase the student fee was to sustain the quality of campus programming.
“In my opinion, the reason most students love, enjoy and ultimately choose to stay at Whitman is because of the amazing student life,” said sophomore ASWC Senator Kayvon Behroozian. “Much of the activities, events and culture that go into the student life we all experience here is due in large part to ASWC’s funding and committed support to things like WEB, club trips/activities, student initiatives and so much more.”
With an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 dollar increase to the total ASWC budget, Seigert also hopes to help further expand underfunded organizations that currently exist through the contribution of its members, such as club sports.
“Right now club sports are horribly underfunded, they would like to see their ASWC dollars go to more use,” he said. “Every single club sports team charges team dues. . . as of right now, the average Frisbee player who’s on the traveling team spends about 300 to 400 dollars of their own personal money.”
Siegert expects that the student fee will not be dramatically increased in the upcoming years, but hopes to use this upcoming year’s increase as a learning experience in making ASWC run more efficiently.
“This gives ASWC another year to start thinking critically: How can ASWC as an organization run more smoothly? Where are we spending perhaps where we don’t need to spend money? And how can organizations utilize their ASWC funds to get the most out of that money?” +
