ELISHA VALLADARES-CORMIER
SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER
Franciscan University Student Government (FUSG) met March 1 to discuss reallocating club funds and recognize a new student club.
Treasurer Danny Butters began the meeting by giving his weekly report and said that the contingency fund currently has $51,027.99, remaining unchanged from the week before. Following that was the approval of last week’s minutes and reports from the Finance and Rules and Order Committees.
The meeting then moved on to the discussion of new legislation with the introduction of Spring Bill #12. The bill called for $200 to be allocated to the Young Americans for Freedom club for their event “How to Debate Social Issues with Liberals and Atheists” with speaker David Azerrad. The event had been postponed previously due to the speaker’s sickness, and the money from the bill would be going towards travel expenses. The bill passed without objection.
Spring Bill #13 called for $1,055 to be allocated to a student project. The bill was briefly discussed before FUSG voted to table the bill indefinitely. Spring Bill #14 was to benefit the Franciscan Fatal Men’s Ultimate Frisbee team and asked that a total of $810 be reallocated. The club would be using the funds to pay for two tournaments instead of one. The bill was passed without objection.
The final piece of new legislation was Spring Bill #15, which called for recognition of the Franciscan University Irish Dance Club. Representing the club was its president Emily Cattapan. There was a slight moment of confusion, as the Rules and Order Committee had not been able to review and approve the club’s constitution, which lasted until Sen. Daniel McNichol moved to suspend the bylaws. The motion was passed, and the formal recognition of the club was put to a vote. The club was approved without objection.
The meeting then progressed to further discussion of Spring Bill #13, which had previously been tabled indefinitely. The bill has asked that $1,055 to be allocated to student Joel Fernandes to produce a short film on biotechnology and cancer research. According to the bill, Fernandes asked FUSG to help provide him with funds to cover housing and production costs, in addition to transportation. Assisting Fernandes in the production of the video would be university students, and the final product would have been broadcasted on EWTN.
Due to the abnormality of the request, Vice President Clare McCallan thanked the body for addressing the petition with the utmost respect and announced that Fernandes’ father had recommended that he seek funding elsewhere. The meeting was then adjourned.
FUSG will next meet March 8 at 11 a.m. in the St. Leo Room.