In a mostly symbolic decision, the Student Judiciary ruled Monday a student government committee’s process for student groups to apply for over $250,000 in funding is invalid.
The waiver groups were required to submit sparked controversy when the Multicultural Student Coalition turned it in past deadline, making the group ineligible for its requested $1.27 million in funding.
SJ Chief Justice Kathryn Fifield said the SJ ruled the waiver invalid because the Student Services Finance Committee did not implement it properly.
“Because it wasn’t developed over a long enough period of time and groups were only given a week to complete it, it can’t be considered an established process and is therefore a violation of due process,” Fifield said.
But SSFC Chair Sarah Neibart said the group can not receive funding because the committee ruled it ineligible in October.
“I felt like SSFC pretty much won except for the waiver was invalid,” Neibart said. “However, in my opinion, that really doesn’t affect our process.”
Fifield said the SJ did not take MCSC’s ineligibility into account when making the ruling.
“Because MCSC has been denied eligibility, they’re still ineligible. This decision has no effect on that,” Fifield said. “For all practical purposes, the only things that could be considered in this case were things that happened before the hearing three weeks ago.”
MCSC members said they appealed SSFC’s decision to prove the committee was dysfunctional.
Group members said SSFC broke bylaws when it created the waiver in the summer session by amending the committee’s rules, and said Neibart did not have the authority to unilaterally decide MCSC’s waiver was invalid since the group turned it in late.
The SJ ruled that, while SSFC was not supposed to amend the rules, the committee did not intentionally break bylaws. Fifield said the ruling will impact future SSFC sessions by making it clear rules cannot be amended in the summer session.
The body also said Neibart did have the authority to deem MCSC’s waiver invalid.
