Hello club members!

My name is Kaitlin Johnson and I am the SGA VP of Financial Affairs. On behalf of the Student Government Association's Financial Affairs Committee, we look forward to working with you over the 2016-2017 school year. If you have any questions or concerns, please email me at kjohnson@lasell.edu .

Kaitlin Johnson

SGA VP of Financial Affairs

Eligibility to Request Funding

Clubs that do not receive funding from another source (i.e. academic department or the Office of Student Activities) and are registered and recognized by the Student Government Association (SGA), may request funding each semester from SGA. In addition, clubs must demonstrate financial responsibility each semester. Clubs must track their spending on Org Sync.

Requesting Funds from SGA

The following steps will help your organization on the process of deciding on a proposed budget and completing the Student Government Association Funding Packet each semester.

Brainstorm with Club Members

What do you need for the upcoming semester? Figure out what the top priorities are, what things would be helpful, and what can wait. Try to focus on requesting funds for the most important things.

Research Prices and Options
Once you have a complete list of what your club will request funds for, start researching different options and prices. You should have a solid idea of the cost for each thing you request. Do not estimate or guess what things cost. The Office of Student Activities can help with this!

Complete the SGA Funding Request Form
There are two worksheets within the Funding Request Packet that should be completed (packets are not currently available, please send questions to studentactivities@lasell.edu). The Budget Summary Form is a line by line account of what you are requesting funds for. For each line on your Budget Summary form, your club should submit a corresponding Program Budget Worksheet. The Program Budget Worksheet allows your club to more fully explain the costs associated with each event or item on your Budget Summary Form. Make sure you are clear and thorough with your explanations. It will help SGA understand what you are asking for and why it is important for your club.

Turn in the SGA Funding Request Form
Deadlines change each semester. The deadline for the Fall semester is in September and the Spring semester deadline is in January. Be aware of the deadline for turning in the SGA Funding Form. Do not turn in the form late. SGA will allocate all the money for the semester to clubs who have turned in the form on time. Late submissions may not receive funding.

Attend the SGA Funding Meeting
All clubs requesting money from SGA should send at least one representative to the SGA Funding Meeting. At this meeting, SGA will review all forms submitted for the semester and make final decisions regarding funding for your club. Having a club member there to answer questions from SGA or advocate for your request will increase your chances of receiving the funding your club asks for. In the Fall semester, the meeting will be in September and in the Spring semester it will be in January/Early February. If a club does not spend all their SGA funds, they will be penalized in the next semester SGA budget hearings.

Allocation and Org Sync

Your club representative and advisor will receive an email with the amount of funding your club will have from SGA for the semester after the Funding Meeting. This money will be put into your Org Sync Checkbook. All expenses or receipts must be recorded using your Org Sync Checkbook. SGA uses this as your official budget.

During the semester, a member of the SGA Financial Affairs Committee will be in contact for a mid-semester review. During this time, any clubs that anticipates have funding left over at the end of the semester will be able to return any unspent budgets without being penalized. After this time, money that is collected will be offered up for reallocation. If your club needs more money, this would be beneficial. The SGA Vice President of Financial Affairs will send out an email with more information at that time. Please keep these guidelines in mind when completing your SGA budget request.

EARLY SGA BUDGET FUNDING PROCESS

Clubs in need of funding before the formal SGA Budget Hearing will have the opportunity to submit for an Early SGA Budget Request form. The entire process will be carried out through email with the SGA Vice President of Financial Affairs. In order to receive the form, the club must contact the SGA Vice President of Financial Affairs or the Coordinator of Student Organization. For Fall Early Budget, SGA President and Vice Presidents will discuss, the SGA Financial Affairs Committee will discuss Spring Early Budget. After the budget amount has been allocated, the club will have until the date of SGA Budget Hearings to completely spend their Early Budget Request funds.

Clubs sometimes choose to fundraise towards a certain goal for the club or for an outside charity. When fundraising, there are some additional guidelines that need to be followed. The Office of Student Activities works in collaboration with the Office of Development and Alumni Relations t to approve all fundraising initiatives on campus. When your club is thinking about fundraising, meet with the Office of Student Activities to ensure you are following all the necessary steps. In conjunction with the completion of an Event Request Form for fundraising activities, the Office 

 Fundraise with a Purpose

When first brainstorming ideas for fundraising activities, ask yourself and your fellow club members the following: why does your organization want to fundraise? You should have a specific purpose or goal in mind. Some clubs will begin fundraising with no reason in mind and the funds end up never being used. Whether it is for your organization to save up for t-shirts, go on a trip, or donate to a non-profit, there should always be an end goal in mind. 

Event Registration Form and Fundraising Approval Form

The first step your organization should take is to pick up and fill out an Event Registration Form with the Office of Student Activities. The form should be turned into the Office of Student Activities as early as possible, but no later than 10 days before the fundraiser will take place. This must be completed before you can be approved on the Fundraising Approval Form.Once your fundraiser has been submitted by the Office of Student Activities, you may fill out the Fundraising Approval Form online (here).  This form is reviewed and approved by the Office of Development and Alumni Relations. After the fundraiser is approved by both the Office of Student Activities and the Office of Development and Alumni Relations, you can move ahead in finalizing details.
 

Cash Box Requests

Since fundraisers involve collecting money, your organization will need to request a cash box. To do this, a Cash Box Request Form must be filled out on OrgSync at least 10 business days before the event. A good rule is to complete this form at the same time as your Event Registration Form. Cash boxes can be picked up between 9:00 A.M. and 7:00 P.M. the same day as your event, or the business day before your event if it is on a weekend or holiday. 
The cash box must be returned the next business day between 9:00 A.M. and 7:00 P.M. Money collected will be deposited into your organization's account and should be recorded using OrgSync. If your organization is donating to a charity, the Coordinator for Student Organizations or your club's advisor must go to Village Bank, located on 307 Auburn Street, Auburndale, MA 02466, to receive a money order in the amount the club fundraised.  Once the money order is received, it can be sent to the charity. For non-charity fundraising the cash box should be returned to the Office of Student Activities and the club is responsible to track the amount of money deposited in their OrgSync account. 

Follow Up

Always make sure to follow up with the Office of Development and Alumni Relations to report how much money was raised. It is important for Lasell to keep the most accurate records possible of any money being raised or donated.

SPENDING SGA, FUNDRAISING OR OFFICE OF STUDENT ACTIVITIES BUDGETS

When you are ready to make purchases here are the funding options for payment in the order they should be considered

Order online or credit card purchases

The Office of Student Activities will use a credit card to purchase items online for your club. This is the preferred means by which to make purchases. Ordering online ensures that no club members or advisers choose their own money. Items can be shipped directly to Lasell College. This method requires at least 10 business days to notice to the Office of Student Activities, and additional time for shipping depending on the purchase.

Payment via contract or invoice

Clubs need to request a contract for any performer or vendor coming to campus. At least 30 days is required for submitting a contract for signatures and to request a check for payment. Another related method of payment is to request an invoice from the performer or vendor for the full amount of the service or performance. This requires at least for four weeks to be approved and to have a check request.

Request petty cash

Clubs may request a maximum of $50 in petty cash from the Office of Student Activities at any one time. Requests must be submitted using to petty cash request form on OrgSync at least three business days in advance. After items are purchased, all the seats and unspent money needs to be returned to the Office of Student Activities by the next business day. Clubs are responsible for updating their account to the exact amount spent.

Some clubs may have access to funding whether through an academic department or in conjuction with other offices on campus. The best step for looking at what this budget might look like is to talk with the club's advisor about the funding opportunities for your club or organization.

When it comes to requesting funds for club spending there are a few guidelines that should be followed for SGA Budget spending.

If a club would like to purchase gift cards, they cannot be utilized towards recognition of completion of a membership/leadership role. Gift cards can be purchased as a prize for an organization event and must have the appropriate prize form filled out.

When requesting money for apparel, the club is required to have its members pay for at least half of said apparel.  The entire SGA budget allocation cannot cover the cost alone.

The Office of Student Activities does not reimburse club executive officers and members for out of pocket expenses for the organization. It is the responsibility of the club to request funds from their club budget at an appropriate time.

If a receipt is lost, you must submit the following in writing within one business day:

· Date

· Place where items were purchased

· The total amount for purchases

· Why it was lost

The Office of Student Activities will determine if the explanation is reasonable. If not, you will not be able to request petty cash or credit card requests for one week. If repeated a second time, you will not be able to make petty cash request for one month. If a repeated a third time, you will not be able to request petty cash for the rest of the semester.