Students, SGA senators discuss GAF fund allocations for hours
By the time the SGA meeting was over Tuesday night, Senate Resolution 20 had seen discussion, but no progress.
The resolution, which proposes how to allocate the new funds raised by the General Activity Fee (GAF), was tabled for next week’s meeting.
Eighty-seven percent of the new GAF funds will be going to the athletic department.
About 40 students came to SGA’s meeting to voice their opinions about the allocation.
Kim Grieve, USD dean of students, gave a brief presentation at the meeting to explain the process of allocating GAF funds.
David Herbster, USD athletic director, followed Grieve’s presentation and talked with students and senators, answering their questions and concerns about how the increase is going to be allocated.
The crowd seemed to be divided evenly, with athletes supporting Resolution 20 and fine arts students and members of the Student Veterans Resource Center (SVRC) opposing the GAF allocations as it stands. The meeting lasted for more than two hours.
SGA at-large Senator Diedra Gatzke questioned the advantages of being in Division-I versus Division-II. Citing a 2012 Sioux City Journal article in which Jeanette Hubert, USD’s athletic director for business and finance, claimed D-I schools need less funding than D-II schools, Gatzke questioned why USD doesn’t fit that pattern.
“As the revenue goes up for being in Division-I, university funding should actually decrease,” Gatzke said. “I was just wondering why the decrease hasn’t occurred, if it was supposed to.”
Herbster said he’s not sure the university funding will ever go down.
“I look at (the athletics department) trying to be more self-sufficient,” he said. “When will we get to that point? I wish I had that answer for you right now.”
One SVRC member expressed concern over being unable to use the athletic buildings when USD sports teams weren’t using them. Herbster responded that the Wellness Center was open for him to exercise when he wanted to.
Another student from the audience said he regretted voting for the GAF increase three years ago. He hoped the SGA could vote to overturn the GAF increase.
Nathaniel Steinlicht, SGA president, warned that overturning the GAF increase would cause SGA’s budget to shrink. This would result in cuts to student organizations’ budgets.
SGA communications manager McKenzie Holton advised students to come to SGA meetings more often in order for their voices to be heard.
“We would love to hear about these issues when they first start and before they reach critical mass,” she said. “SGA should not just be a student outlet when a budget is up.”
In other SGA business, senators voted to approve Senate Bill 56, which changes SGA’s constitution and by-laws to be more inclusive and gender-neutral.
