Two student organizations applied for 2013-’14 fiscal year funding eligibility from the Student Services Finance Committee Thursday.
Representatives from the Campus Women’s Center, an organization focused on addressing the multiple oppressions women-identified individuals face, said they deserved eligibility because they provide their services to every level of student at the university.
The main service the group provides is called Kids Time, a free babysitting service offered to both undergraduate and graduate student parents.
CWC Support Services Coordinator Gethsemane Herron-Coward said she hopes the committee will take into consideration that the group provides an avenue for all people to grow as a person through their services.
Movimiento Estudiantil Chican@ de Aztlán de UW-Madison members spoke about the important role their organization plays on campus in using art to encourage political and cultural engagement, including workshops taught through music, painting, poetry and other art forms.
M.E.Ch.A member Valeria Cerda said she hoped SSFC gained a better sense of what M.E.Ch.A is about and the important role they play in representing marginalized communities on campus.
“We are essential on this campus,” Cerda said. “Our services do provide something that is not anywhere else on this campus.”
According to SSFC Chair Ellie Bruecker, an organization must undergo eligibility hearings every four years and demonstrate its ability to perform “direct services,” which are educational services available and tailorable to any UW-Madison student’s needs, to receive funding from student segregated fees.
Student groups must devote 51 percent of their time offering direct services to receive eligibility.
SSFC will vote on both groups’ eligibility Monday.
