ABC Basic Training September 15 2007 The Activities

ABC Basic Training September 15, 2007

The Activities Board at Columbia • ABC is the largest of six governing boards at Columbia. • There are currently 154 student groups under ABC. • ABC is the governing board for most undergraduate cultural, pre-professional, competition and publication groups, among others. ABC does not govern political, religious, community service, sports and fraternal organizations. • ABC ≠ SDA/OMA § ABC = Full-time Students § SDA/OMA = Full-time CU Staff • We operate under SDA, who provides us with money & resources and manages all of our accounts.

Composition of the ABC Board ABC Executive Board (4) • President, Vice President, Treasurer & Secretary Entire ABC Board (20) ABC Reps (13) • Representatives-at-large Council Liaisons (3) • CCSC, ESC, GSSC • Weekly Meetings on Wednesdays at 8: 30 pm

Roles of ABC Board Members • President: Runs meetings, organizes the board and attends meetings with other governing boards and administration. Responsible for the overall operations of ABC. • Vice-President: Manages internal board affairs, directs ABC policy for groups and runs the Appeals committee. • Treasurer: Organizes the ABC budget, chairs the Policy Committee. Point person for all financial matters for groups. • Secretary: Takes minutes, answers general correspondence and chairs the Recognition & De-Recognition committee. • Representative-at-Large: Advocates for groups on different issues & needs, reviews EAFs and advises 8 -14 clubs. • Council Liaisons: Contacts for their respective student councils; since ABC receives money from all 3 councils, the liaisons also serve as voting members, partaking in ABC decisions.

What does ABC do for you? • We Fund and Recognize Clubs. § We determine which student groups can have access to the resources granted to groups by SDA and by the Lerner Hall administration. • We work to advance your interests. § I. e. space issues, debt concerns, how to navigate the system § Your reps serve as your advocates both on the ABC board and with administrators. • We work with you and your SDA advisors to come up with solutions to issues that arise and affect you.

Main Processes of the ABC • New Group Recognition: § Review applications of new student organizations seeking official recognition & funding • Fund Student Groups: § Initial Allocations: Review and approve budget requests submitted by groups in March for the following year § Emergency Allocations: Review budget requests from Category B groups who fail to turn in Initial Allocation packets on time § Appeals: Review funding requests for unexpected needs, Capital Expenditure and events where details were not adequately available at time of IA submission; Review funding requests from Category A groups. • Review Event Approval Forms (EAFs): § To ensure that club programming enhances student life at Columbia and to ensure that funds are not used inappropriately.

Categories A & B • Category A: § Eligible for up to $250 per semester § Must submit appeals (EAF) to use $250 § A group must be Category A for at least 2 semesters before applying for a category promotion • Category B: § Eligible for need-based initial allocation for the year § Appeals may be submitted at anytime during the year for additional funding • Dual-recognition: § Dually-recognized groups are funded by both ABC and SGA after satisfying specific requirements of both

Event Approval Forms (EAFs) • Fill out an EAF for every event: http: //www. columbia. edu/cu/abc/eaf. html § This is the only way to receive money from ABC for an event. § This keeps ABC aware of your club’s activity and keeps you far from being considered for de-recognition. • A copy will be sent to your ABC rep who may ask you some questions before he/she approves it. § You must give your rep 48 hours to respond. • Submission of an EAF does NOT guarantee approval. § If the event is approved, bring a copy of the approval to your advisor, who will then sign off on any e-forms needed to make purchases for your event.

What are Appeals? • Appeals are the process through which: § Category A groups can spend their $250 per semester. § Category B groups can receive money for an event that was not included in the original allocation packet submitted last semester. • This year, we are eliminating the paper appeals process and utilizing the online EAF form for both EAFs and appeals. • ABC must vote on each appeal. § Appeals must be submitted before noon on Saturdays in order to be reviewed in time by the Appeals Committee and the ABC board at weekly Wednesday meetings. § Appeals submitted later than noon will be reviewed the following week.

ABC Timeline of ter t s ar St eme ll S a F Late September: Emergency Allocation (EA) due for groups who did not submit an initial allocation in the spring October 14: New Group Recognitions (NGR) packets due for Fall Semester. November: New Group Recognition decisions announced Early March: New Group Recognition decisions announced Late April: ABC AGM and Elections (EBoard, Rep) Last Appeals for year due E. O. Se S m pr es in te g r September: Activities Fair; Basic Training; ABC commences first Meeting; groups begin holding events Mid February: Late November: NGR packets due for Last Appeals for Spring Semester semester due (to be reviewed by Late March: end of Fall Deadline for 08 -09 Initial Semester) Allocation packets Early-May: ABC closes; group accounts are closed for the fiscal year.

New Group Recognition (NGR) • Criteria used to judge applicant groups: § Does group fill new niche on campus? § Is this group sustainable -- both in terms of leadership and in terms of funding? § Does the group fulfill all of our constitutional requirements? (ie. Membership, purpose, etc. ) § Demonstrated level of activity on campus • Typically, less than 5% of applicants each semester receive recognition. § 20 -50 groups apply each semester • Deadline is 11: 59 pm on October 14, 2007 § Application can be found on our website: http: //www. columbia. edu/cu/abc/ngr. html

Category Promotion (from A to B) • Criteria similar to those used to judge new group applicants: § Have been recognized as a Category A group for at least 2 semesters § Demonstrate a need for more than $250 per semester § Organizational Strength -- how has the group developed since recognition/in recent years? § Is this group sustainable -- both in terms of leadership and in terms of funding? § Well-conceived budget packet submission • Same forms as those used for New Group Recognition. • Deadline is 11: 59 pm on October 14, 2007 § Application can be found on our website: http: //www. columbia. edu/cu/abc/ngr. html

ABC’s Main Goals for 2007 -2008 • Make Everyone’s Life Easier • Continue to Help Groups Develop and Reach Goals • Foster Collaboration

Important Reminder #1 of 5 • Make sure you have sent Samantha (smj 2118) the contact info for your group’s executive board! § No contact info = your allocation has not been transferred into your account & no appeals will be allowed § We want to make sure you are on our listserve so we can send you important information!

Important Reminder #2 of 5 • Keep your website updated! § We will not be posting a club contact sheet this year, due to individuals unwilling to have private information posted on the web & also because of the increase in unsolicited mail/spam from outside sources. § If you would like to be contacted by people interested in your club, you can post your contact info on your own websites, which also allows you greater flexibility.

Important Reminder #3 of 5 • Any changes to you club’s name or constitution are not official until they are submitted to ABC and ratified (if appropriate) by the board. § Please submit these changes to ABC or penalties will be assessed on allocations and appealing privileges suspended. § De-recognition may also be considered.

Important Note #4 of 5 • All EAFs submitted in the past 2 weeks will be reviewed this weekend by the Exec board. § If you submitted an EAF to your rep, please resubmit them to ABC exec. § If either your treasurer or president is not here today, we will hold your EAF until training has been completed.

Important Note #5 of 5 • Recognition! Money! Awards! § Be on the lookout for an email in the next few weeks with info on how you can gain recognition and an award(s) for exceptional programming and collaboration… • Suggestion: Get in touch with your ABC rep and let them know what you have planned for the year!

Closing • Your Rep is your first contact: • Find out who your rep is at: (http: //www. columbia. edu/cu/abc/repassignments. html) • You can also contact the Executive Board at: abc_exec@columbia. edu