The Office of Student Activities office is located in Buntrock Commons Gaby Perez/The Olaf Messenger
With over 200 student organizations and clubs, Oles can find numerous ways to take part in campus life. However, conversations on budget cuts to student organizations have been circulating, which would affect the functioning of on-campus student life. The Office of Student Activities (OSA) claims there has been no budget cuts for student organizations, but they have to limit spending for large events that happen on campus.
The OSA is a staff-led group that helps students become more involved on campus outside of classrooms. The Student Government Association (SGA), which is the official student-led governance organization that represents students’ interests and ideas on campus, is part of the OSA. One of the SGAs responsibilities is to allocate funding for student organizations. SGA allocated their funding into the different SGA Branches. Different branches then distribute funds to the student organizations. Student organizations are required to contact the OSA if they need help with fundraising or are planning to spend money and need assistance. SGA Branches, the Programming Board, and The Pause all are part of the OSA and work within the office to handle finances related to their operations.
Each school year, St. Olaf hosts the Fall Block Party, Here for The Hill, and many more events. However, Director of Student Activities Brandon Cash ’16 stated that supplies and resources needed for large events are becoming more expensive. “We have to create a set budget for these events,” Cash said in an interview with The Olaf Messenger. “The Student Act fund didn’t go up or down.”
The Pause is also experiencing budget restrictions. The materials needed for kitchen operations and their use of technology are paid for by the funds the OSA allocates to The Pause. “There haven’t been budget cuts expressly, but rather a reallocation of money between The Pause, SGA, and Programming Board,” The Pause’s Financial Manager Alex Walker said in an email interview with The Olaf Messenger. This change has affected The Pause and they are being more mindful about how they spend money.
Cash also mentioned that for the 2023-24 Fiscal Year, there has not been an increase in funds. “We are trying to get creative in terms of funding opportunities that don’t require most fiscal resources,” Cash said.
Recently, the Student Organization Committee (SOC) put together the Hungry Hungry Hippos Challenge in The Pause as a way for student organizations to win money. OSA is working on creating future events that will help organizations raise money. Student organizations have many support systems here on campus. OSA highly encourages organizations to reach out if they need help finding efficient ways of spending.
