The Student Union Treasury is justifiably concerned that student dollars are being wasted in the Assembly Series. In the past weeks, Treasury has debated what, if any, funding it should give the Assembly Series, based on reports of low student attendance at the lectures.
For this year, Treasury approved a $75,000 blank check, payable to the Assembly Series, to fund the lectures. They gave it before knowing specifically what it would go to. Roughly $25,000 more got approved for Series lectures directly via student group requests.
Barbara Rea, director of the Assembly Series, called SU’s allocation “very generous.” Indeed, SU’s Treasurer Jessica Jones estimated that SU funds a third of the Series.
The $75,000, though, is money that is taken out of student control. Rather than being allocated by elected Treasury representatives, the 12-person Assembly Series Committee spends this sum. Yet only four undergraduates sit on this committee.
Treasury representatives, like Judson Clark, said that this money wasn’t being spent optimally. “Think what we could do with it if we gave it to students,” he said.
It makes no sense for SU to be spending so much money on events that students don’t attend, especially when Treasury only funds 40 percent of student group budget requests. Clark is dead-on in his assessment: student groups could better use this money on programming that is relevant to students.
Harsh Agarwal, another Treasury representative, cautioned that pulling out of the Assembly Series could strain relations between the administration and SU.
This is a valid concern, but Treasury’s obligations are to students, not administrators. Right now, “the University sees this [the Assembly Series] as a publicity mechanism,” according to Treasury representative Brian Nakash. While there’s nothing wrong with this, the University should pay for its own publicity.
Besides, Treasury shouldn’t cut Assembly Series funding completely, it should just be more selective about whom they fund (and not relinquish control over student money.) It would be wholly appropriate, for example, to fund speakers that will draw large numbers of students, like Mo Rocca or William Kristol, or speakers specifically invited by student groups.
If the Assembly Series is important to the University, it will find another way to pay for it. And if it doesn’t-well, students won’t be losing much.