Student Federation gave $7,020 to Hillsdale College for Life, the pro-life club on campus, on Nov. 18.
“Students want the opportunity to go out and put all the things that they learn about here into action about the pro-life issue,” HCL Vice President and senior Ruth Moreno said.
HCL requested $7,720 from the Federation to cover bus travel for the March for Life held in Washington, D.C., planned for Jan. 21, 2022.
“The March for Life gives students that opportunity to make their voices heard in front of our government,” Moreno said.
The finance committee suggested $7,020 in order to cover the cost of the buses with the recommendation that HCL charge $75 instead of $65 per student. The student fees would cover one half of the trip with the federation’s funding making up the difference.
Of the $7,020, HCL needed only $6,730 to pay for bus travel, therefore leaving the club with an extra $290.
Representative Regina Gravrok disagreed with giving an extra $290 to the club on the basis of it serving an unclear purpose. She said the federation would be setting a precedent because it would be giving out funds without any clear objectives.
After much debate on the issue, the federation chose the finance committee’s proposition of giving $7,020 to the club.
“Hillsdale College for Life is one of the most worthy causes to receive money,” Federation President Brandt Siegfried said. “I think they do good work and giving them $290 in addition to what they needed to run the trip was more than worthy and completely justified.”
After the proposal, the federation held a brief executive session, closed to the public, concerning disciplinary action.
Representative Helen Schlueter commented on the federation’s role in supporting the needs of the student body.
“We are here to make sure different clubs have the money that they need while keeping in mind the greater number of clubs,” she said. “We want the money going to the clubs, so the more we can help in that, the better.”
Representative Anthony Iatropoulos also spoke on the federation’s role in helping streamline the financial needs of clubs.
“If Student Fed wasn’t here, the clubs would have to do a lot more fundraising on their own,” he said. “We basically multiply the students’ money. They are able to do more activities because of the additional funding that they can get from us, and that’s a big benefit for the students.”
Siegfried encouraged students to attend at least one federation meeting in their four years at the college so they might be involved in the division of funds.
“I love it when people come,” Siegfried said. “The more people are involved, the more it matters. The more it matters, the better quality the Student Federation will be.”