Students recently noticed that the Activities Programming Board (APB) held a fundraiser event at Chipotle, causing confusion among some students as to why APB needed to fundraise, as they are a campus organization, not a campus club.
Caroline Colcombe, senior education major, is a student leader for APB. She explained how APB works with the budget they receive each semester.
“APB has a smaller budget than some other schools of our size. Because of this, we are more creative with how we come up with, plan and execute our events. We have a great amount of success using the resources around us, on and off campus, which has allowed us to offer quality programming for the student body,” Colcombe said.
APB pairs with other clubs, departments and organizations on campus to provide events that students will enjoy and creates relationships with local businesses, such as Chipotle, which give them a more flexible budget.
“Partnering also defrays the cost for both APB and other groups, and we have the opportunity to support students with events,” Colcombe said.
Colcombe how APB plans what events they will offer for student each year.
“We do an activity where we think of an event and imagine that we have a million-dollar budget. Then we take all those million-dollar ideas and break them down to more manageable and realistic possibilities for programming, including event schematics, marketing details and other factors,” Colcombe said.
The Student Government Association (SGA) receives their funding from the student activities fee paid with student tuition. APB’s funding comes from various sources on campus and is broken down by school administrators.
Juliana Ruggiero, a sophomore integrated science major, is the current SGA executive board treasurer.
“After elections but before the semester begins, the elective executive board treasurer comes up with a proposed budget, usually pulling from the expenses that were used by SGA the previous year,” Ruggiero said.
Ruggiero explained that once the treasurer finalized the budget, it is shared at the first SGA meeting of the semester. There, all senate members vote on it.
“If there is something the senate does not like, the treasurer can amend the budget before it is voted on. After the budget is approved by vote, it is finalized and cannot be altered unless there is a motion from the senate to move money around, and then there is a vote to reallocate that money to a different place,” Ruggiero said.
The way the budget is allocated depends on the semester.
“In the fall, there is a lot allocated towards Homecoming, and in the spring, a lot of the budget goes towards SGA’s capital project and Spring Fest,” Ruggiero said.
Ruggiero said that ultimately, SGA’s goal is to enhance student life, so they take in suggestion and concerns from their peers.
One way that SGA creates entertainment options for students is through Bearcat Nation events.
“Throughout the course of the semester, the vice president of SGA creates and buys various Bearcat Nation items, such as towels, t-shirts, chairs, mugs and mini footballs, and brings these items to Saint Vincent sporting events,” Ruggiero said. “Through advertising, Bearcat Nation helps foster a sense of community by providing further incentives for peers to go out and support our athletes.”
The APB organization benefits from the budget that the SGA votes on and passes. APB uses the money they receive from the school to create events and activities they think students will enjoy.
APB presented their strategies at the National Association for Campus Activities Mid-Atlantic Conference at an educational session in Oct. 2017.
“We presented on how to program with a small budget, how to create and use promotional items and how to use resources to the best of our abilities,” Colcombe said.
APB received four awards at the conference: the Spirit Award, the Social Media award, the Staff Award and the Outstanding Program Series Award for SVC’s The Voice.
Throughout the year, APB hosts bands, comedians, craft and movie nights for students, as well as off campus trips and events. SGA creates a dialogue between students on campus and other offices and organizations through committees.
Photo: APB Facebook page, SVC Flickr