System Procedures
Chapter 2 - Students
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Procedure 2.8.1 Student Life

Part 1. Definitions

Student organization: Those clubs and organizations that have been formally recognized by the campus student association(s) as described in Policy 2.1 Campus Student Associations.

Student life/activities: Student life/activities are those activities included under Minnesota Statute Section 136F.01. Subd. 5.

Part 2. Management of Student Life/Activity Fee Allocations

Subpart A. Budget process. The campus student association(s) and the institution president or designee shall jointly determine a schedule to ensure that the budget plan for student life/activity will be completed for action in the spring. At the beginning of the budget preparation process for the next academic year, the college or university administration shall provide the student life/activity committee with a copy of the previous year's student life/activity financial statement, current year-to-date budget and financial statement, and pertinent regulations and policies. Supplemental budget information, including process notes and explanations, shall be provided at the request of the student life/activity committee. The student life/activity committee(s) shall present the student life/activity budget, including the fee amount and allocation of revenues, to the campus student association(s) for review. The association(s) shall make recommendations to the college or university president for approval. A campus student association shall review and may recommend new funding requests or modifications during the academic year and submit the revised funding recommendation to the president for action.

Subpart B. Student organization accounts. Each institution shall provide for the fiscal management of student organization accounts. A student organization which receives allocations of student activity monies shall deposit and expend all allocations through an account within the institution activity fund. Student organizations that receive funding from sources other than the institution may establish an agency account for such funds, at the institution’s discretion.

Subpart C. Annual report. Each institution shall prepare a student life/activity fee annual financial report including student life/activity fund reserves and accrued interest. The report shall be available to interested parties and provided to the student life/activity committee and the campus student association(s). The campus student association(s) may request that the institution provide a detailed accounting or audit of the student life/activity fund which shall be made available to interested parties. The cost of these audits shall be borne by the institution's student life/activity fund.

Subpart D. Carry forward and reserves. Except to the extent necessary to insure that expenditures recommended by the campus student association and approved by the president are funded, expenditures from carry forward, including reserves, shall occur only after receipt of a recommendation from the campus student association. The amount of these carry forward funds shall be reported to the student life committee. Interest earned from the student life/activity fund shall be credited back to that fund. The committee may review and make recommendations regarding the investment policy for student life/activities reserves.

Subpart E. Use of Funds.

The student life/activity fee shall fund only activities included under Minnesota Statute Section 136F.01, Subd. 5, consistent with appropriate use and commonly accepted business practices.

The institution president or designee and the campus student associations(s) shall jointly establish guidelines on appropriate business practices for expenditures from the student life/activity fund.

Student life/activity funds shall not be used to fund:

Purchase of alcohol,

Donations to college or university foundations or other external charitable organizations or

Scholarships or grants to individuals.

All revenue collected through the student health services fee, and maintained in an account of the activity fund, are subject to the finance policies and procedures of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities.

Student leader tuition waivers and/or stipends shall be funded by the student life/activity fund upon recommendation of the campus student association and approval by the president. The institution shall determine whether to withhold taxes from student leader funds granted.

The student life committee may agree to provide funds for its own support through the student life/activity budget process.

Effective date: August 2, 2004