SGA passes funding requests, recognizes new campus organizations

In their first session since the Student Government Association (SGA) elections, SGA members heard funding requests from the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), Psi Chi and Hannah Jones of Delta Tau Alpha.

Senators also unanimously voted to recognize Corn Hole Club, International Student Association (ISA) and Young Americans for Liberty as student organizations for the 2021-22 academic year.

American Choral Directors Association Funding Request

ACDA, an organization for those interested in choral music as a college student or for a future career, president Lauren Jenkins and vice president Ella Crader presented their request to the senators. They requested $1,400 to help cover the hotel costs from attending the Southwestern American Choral Directors Association Conference (SWACDA) Feb. 28 through March 3.

Eight of the 13 students who attended the conference were selected to be a part of the 135-student Collegiate Honors Choir. The choir was formed by the states in attendance at the conference, including Texas, Missouri, Arkansas and Illinois.

Due to a change in student leadership in the middle of February, Jenkins became president and quickly began looking into funding for the trip. The music department agreed to cover the hotels, but Jenkins said to stay in good standing, they wanted to reimburse the department.

College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics senator Anna Carpenter felt since they would be reimbursing the music department as opposed to individual students, it was something the senators shouldn’t approve.

“If they had come to us beforehand and we had paid for them to go and stay in the hotel, that would’ve been a different story, but we’re not reimbursing the individuals, we’re reimbursing the department for what they're doing,” Carpenter said.

There was a lot of back and forth between senators, about the wording of the resolution, the change in leadership and the nature of the request. Treasurer Sophie Machen used the period of discussion to clarify what this funding request means for the ACDA students.

“If you approve this, then it would be like them reimbursing the department,” Machen said. “If you don’t approve it, they have to reimburse the department themselves. … This isn’t solely on us to reimburse the department; [ACDA] wanted to reimburse the department, anyway.”

Many senators stated their support for funding the request while asking questions. Most of the questions were directed toward the executive board regarding what the procedure for reimbursing a department for the students was.

The resolution ultimately passed, with one “no” vote from Carpenter.

Psi Chi Funding Request

Psi Chi, the international honor society for psychology students, president Alex Bansbach presented a request for $440 for two students who are attending the 2022 Midwestern Psychological Association (MPA) Conference in Chicago.

Bansbach said attending this conference was one of the highlights of his college experience and wants more students to experience it.

“I’m the only current member of our exec board that has ever gone in-person to MPA,” Bansbach said. “It is one of the highlights of my college experience, and so we’re trying to get that started back up again with our members.”

The request for the funding passed among the senators unanimously.

Delta Tau Alpha Funding Request

Jones attended the Delta Tau Alpha, an honors society for students in the field of agriculture, Convention April 7 through 10 and was elected as the national parliamentarian for the organization.

She requested $325 to help cover the registration fee and hotel costs that remained after her department covered part of it. Jones and another member from the Sikeston, Mo., campus attended the convention.

The request was quickly and unanimously passed by the senators.

SGA meets weekly on Mondays in the UC Ballroom at 8 p.m. To watch this week's meeting, check out the Arrow’s livestream on Facebook.