By Kate Hamilton

Dear friends, Spring 2013 Budgets for Student Organizations are due November 16, at 11:59 pm. If you or someone you know is an Org Leader, here are some things to keep in mind for budgeting: •Submit budgets for planned events, for which you already have the logistics determined to the Spring 2013 budgeting period. Often these will be planned events, but feel free to budget for new events that are well thought out. If you don’t feel confident in your plan, save the event for an additional allocation in the spring. If funding for an event is denied because of incomplete planning, please request an additional allocation in the spring when you have more information. This doesn’t mean we think your event is a lesser idea; we just need some more thoughts on the logistics. •I know it might to be frustrating to submit another request for an annual event that has been funded for 20 years. Please keep in mind that the FAC composition changes yearly, so please bear with us and be specific. Even if this is the exact information from last year, please restate the specifics of the event and help us to help you have a great event. •The FAC funds food that is integral to an event. We cannot fund food for food’s sake. If you are planning on having food at your event, tell us why the event would not be able to happen without food. How do this event and the food speak to your mission as an org? The FAC recognizes that our bylaws affect different orgs differently, and this bylaw may prove more frustrating for members of cultural organizations. We have been working to shift our mindset of what “integral” means, but please be specific and as articulate as possible about what the food means for your event. As a committee, we can’t make assumptions and so though it makes perfect sense in your mind, we may need some help seeing the integral-nature of the food. If you are planning on having food at a meeting, or something along the lines of cookies at a film screening, we will likely ask you to use your FlexiFund. Please give us a breakdown of the food you plan to have. If you don’t list a breakdown, we will likely ask you to additionally allocate in the spring when you know more. Please note: The breakdown does not have to be in the line-item part of the budget. You can list food and prices in the description of the event. This saves both you and me lots of time! •Student Orgs may not travel under the college’s name or with college money using their own transportation. If you are leaving campus for an event, even within 50 miles, please submit your entire request to the Travel Grant. Include registration fees, tickets, etc. for your org. This includes vans, bus-passes, or chartering buses. The decisions of the Travel Grant will align with the FAC decisions. This is mostly an effort to capture emergency contact information in case of an accident. If you do not know who will be participating, submit a request for only the money first, and then when you know the contacts and their information, re-submit a request with only the contact information. •If you are requesting a publication, please use the publication form. Please don’t submit your request as an “event,” as the publication form asks questions specific to these types of requests. Capital requests are for physical items that will last 2+ years. •Don’t use your FlexiFund for things that we will fund! Your FlexiFund is yours. You do not need to request Flexi, as it will automatically be given to you. Use this for snacks at meetings, or things forgotten for an event. College rules apply (no drugs, alcohol, tobacco, etc). The FAC will happily fund publicity, bus-passes, etc. for events, so please plan ahead and ask us! •Make your reservations early! You can reserve space before you are approved for allocations—just make sure if something changes, you cancel your reservation. •Submit all of your requests at once. When you are done with one request, simply press “add budget item” to add another request. Press “submit” and not “save & finish later.” •E-mail me with any questions. Your FAC liaisons are also available to attend meetings or work with you individually on your budgets. The list of liaisons and much more information is on the MCSG website (www.macalester.edu/mcsg) under the Committees (FAC) tab. Check out our bylaws, find a link for the Travel Grant submission form, find a video on how to submit a budget, and much more. Finally, I’ve had a really great semester being FAC Chair, and I look forward to what is to come. It’s been wonderful to get to know you all, and talk through some great events together. We’ve been working very hard to increase communication between the FAC and orgs, and we really hope that you feel comfortable coming to the committee or your liaison with anything you need. On behalf of the FAC, thank you for all you do on campus, and please let us know if there is anything you need, or if you have any questions, comments, or concerns. I am genuine when I say I look forward to your requests… it is like knowing five hundred little secrets about next semester. refresh –>