Jordan Cuddemi
News Editor
Tuesday, Sept. 27 marked the third Student Assembly meeting of the 2011-2012 school year. With the semester in full swing, three on-campus organizations came to Student Assembly for funding requests.
The first request came from Daniel Bullard, Ultimate Frisbee Club treasure.
The Ultimate Frisbee Club requested and received $2,250 out of the Contingency Account. The breakdown of its budget allots $1,100 for tournament fees, $400 for travel expenses, $400 for lodging, $100 for food, and $250 for equipment.
Bullard said the Ultimate Frisbee Club currently has 35 members, which forced the club to break into two teams. Due to this increase in players, the club has to pay more money in tournament fees.
Bullard said Ultimate Frisbee also does not have a van or a more formal form of transportation so teammates carpool and use their own gas money to get to and from frisbee tournaments.
“Last year we had three tournaments in the fall and three in the spring,” said Bullard. “It really adds up.”
The second request came from Ballroom Dancing Club President, Michelle Davy. The Ballroom Dancing Club requested and received $1,000 out of the Potential Funding Account. The breakdown of their budget allots $250 for tee shirts, $50 for food, and $700 for professional services.
Davy said the club wishes to purchase tee shirts to gain publicity. “We want to get people involved and have them be aware of the dance options at Keene State,” Davy said.
Davy said the majority of their asking budget will go to their professional dance instructor. Davy stated the club has $500 currently in its possession, which was carried over from last year.
The third request came from Student Body President, Colin Daly and Student Body Vice President, Katelyn Williams, on behalf of Student Government.
Student Government requested and received $10,000 out of the Contingency Account for Pumpkin Lobotomy. The breakdown of its budget allots $8,200 for 1,800 pumpkins, $550 for 45 gallons of apple cider, $600 for 800 corndogs and condiments, $125 for a grill attendant, $456 for 480 premade cotton candy bags, $1,000 for tables, and $219 for emergency funds.
Although the above breaks down to $11,150, Student Government contributed $1,150 to offset the cost to $10,000.
Daly said Student Government decided not to have a band play at pumpkin lobotomy this year in order to save “$2,000 or $3,000.” In place, Daly said WKNH is “more than happy to play music and it will save $2,000 or $3,000.”
Following the three finance requests, the Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) moved to approve their constitution. Founder and President of SSDP Jake Russell, Campaign Manager James Carroll, and Secretary Cali Hebert said the club’s initiative is to improve KSC’s sensible drug policy and make sure students are aware of their constitutional rights.
Russell said KSC has a zero-tolerance drug policy, which leads to expelling students from school; he feels this is “ineffective and does more harm than good.”
The club wishes to one, raise awareness through flyers and events about students’ rights and drug policies on campus and two, promote student activism by engaging students in state bill proposals that pertain to this area. “SSDP looks for overall involvement, whether its awareness or activism,” Russell said.
SSDP is an internationally run organization. “I would consider SSDP more of a movement than a group,” Russell said.
Jordan Cuddemi can be contacted at jcuddemi@keene-equinox.com.