The Opportunity and Reserve Funds are two very important resources for Registered Student Organizations on campus to connect with if they have an unexpected opportunity arise or another need for equipment repair or replacement. These two funds are overseen by the Ways and Means Committee on the Undergraduate Student Government, and committee members make a recommendation to the Undergraduate Student Government body based on an organization's request.
Read through this webpage to find out more about the Opportunity and Reserve Funds, and how you can make a qualified request on behalf of your Registered Student Organization!
In accordance with Undergraduate Student Government Bylaws and Student Leadership and Involvement Policy, there are multiple things that cannot be funded:
- Alcohol
- Giveaways
- Food (unless it serves a cultural purpose)
- Salaries for full-time or part-time staff
- Contributions to political or other campaigns
- Awards or prizes to members
The Opportunity Fund is a specific fund meant for organizations that have had an unexpected opportunity arise or a cost increase in what they originally requested. This fund comes out of the Student Activity Fee that is charged to all students at the beginning of each semester, and grants several opportunities to many organizations each semester! The Opportunity Fund also supports new student organizations that did not have the opportunity to submit a budget for allocations!
Some common examples of Opportunity Fund requests include: an RSO looking to rent space at the SDC for a new event, an RSO is looking to attend an unexpected conference, prices for a previously budgeted conference rose unexpectedly, or an event opportunity arises that wasn't a possibility before!
An Opportunity Fund request cannot be for an event that has already been budgeted for on an RSO's budget for the fiscal year. Unless there is a clear rise in cost or expenses for the event (that can be backed up by historical records or receipts), requests of this nature will be allocated $0 in accordance with the Undergraduate Student Government Bylaws.
The Reserve Fund specifically covers expenses relating to equipment replacement, new equipment, or equipment upgrades that an organization has to foot. In addition, the Reserve Fund helps fund and cover emergencies that cannot be anticipated. The Ways and Means Committee will assist the requesting organization in which fund would be the most appropriate for their request.
Some common examples of Reserve Fund requests include: an RSO wants to replace outdated equipment, a safety concern has come up that an RSO wants to address, or an RSO wants to remodel part of a building used by Undergraduate students.
USG also has the ability to utilize funds in the Reserve Fund for campus initiatives that pertain to the entire Undergraduate body or address a significant issue where there is reason to fund such an initiative. Feel free to come to USG to make a public comment if you believe that you have an initiative that you'd like to propose!
First, the USG Treasurer will bring your request to the Ways and Means Committee during their weekly meeting, and the committee will review the materials associated with your request. Your organization will be expected to give a short pitch about your request at the meeting (which will take 15 minutes maximum) before discussing the request and making a recommendation.
You are welcome to bring anyone in the organization along with you (within reason). We recommend having around 2-3 people in the room representing your organization. While we do recommend that Executive Board members are present, students involved in the club can also be included!
Once the Ways and Means Committee has understood your request, we will discuss privately and make a recommendation to the Undergraduate Student Government body. This recommendation is based off of a number of factors, but we do consider the opportunity / emergency itself, the impact that it would have to your members and the campus, and existing opportunities that your organization has.
The Ways and Means Committee will then bring up the recommendation in New Business to the General Body, and normally after 1 week of deliberation and waiting, the body will vote on the recommendation.
At the meeting where the General Body votes on the recommendation, you are encouraged to attend and speak about your request by sitting in the public gallery. The USG Secretary will notify you of the details of the timeline after a recommendation has been made.
usg@mtu.edu
(906) 487-2406
The Undergraduate Student Government is a Special Budgetary Group of Michigan Technological University. The Undergraduate Student Government's website is hosted on Michigan Tech property, and any and all logos that contain the Michigan Tech brand are owned by the university itself.
