Important Message
 LOOKING FOR BUDGET PROPOSAL INFO?The allocation process consists of four easy steps: 1. Please read the Allocation Handbook before you do anything else!
2. Download and complete the Fund Request Form, as well as any relevant budget spreadsheets (available on the right side of this page).
4. Have your adviser send an email stating their approval of your proposal for submission to the Budget Committee, as well as their knowledge of all items contained.
3. Email all forms to sgabusiness@ithaca.edu
Posted by VP of Business and Finance on 09/21/30
What's New In Finance
In the downloads box to the right, you will notice an additional category now available. The "Total Allocation Data" section is a way for any individual to gain an overview of the total allocations made throughout the current academic year.
New links will be added after each weekly Budget Committee meeting, in order to reflect the current state of the SGA fund. If you have any questions regarding the data available, please do not hesitate to contact the SGA.
Posted by VP of Business and Finance on 10/25/09
Business As Usual
I hope that you semester is going smoothly so far, I just have a few quick updates for you. First off, the Budget Committee is very pleased to announce that it will officially reconvene Wednesday, September 16 with a brand new roster of talented individuals. We have a full line-up of organizations as well, and we look forward to starting the year off.
I would like to thank everyone who submitted Budget Committee applications, and would like to take this opportunity to announce those who were offered positions:
-Jamie Hom: Freshman, Exploratory
-Max Bernstein: Freshman, Business Admin
-Stephanie Lavallato: Freshman, Environmental Studies
-Christina Camardo: Sophomore, Accounting
-Jimmy Knowles: Sophomore, Business Admin
-Natasha Peterson: Sophomore, Biology
-Cody Anderson: Junior, Business Admin
-Emily Backus: Junior, Physics/Business Admin
-Dan Mahone: Junior, Music Education
-Cole Lechleiter: Senior, Biochemistry
Committee meetings will continue every Wednesday evening for the remainder of the year, so get your proposals in at any point to join the queue. Also feel free to email me or visit the SGA office during office hours with any questions or concerns regarding the budget process.
The Allocation Handbook is also up to Version 2.7, so I encourage all of you to update your records in order to have the most up-to-date information. There are a few very important changes enclosed which you should all be aware of.
Finally, I am still on the search for a Finance Assistant. Please review the application available within the “Downloads” section to the right if you are interested.
Thank you all for stopping by!
-Brian
Posted by VP of Business and Finance on 09/15/09
Welcome To The New Academic Year
Dear Student Organizations,
My name is Brian Keefe, and during the 2009 to 2010 academic year, I will be continuing to serve in the position of Vice President of Business & Finance. During the previous year, my main goal was to improve communication between the Student Government Association and student organizations on campus. I hope that the improvements which I instated have served to not only simplify the budget process, but make necessary information more attainable.
This year, I plan on utilizing the knowledge that I have gained in order to further improve upon both communication and the budget process. I will strive to strengthen SGA’s relationship with student organizations, as well as help to convey information more easily and effectively.
In order to accomplish these goals however, I need to ask for your help. For the budget process to be successfully designed around student organizations, I need the feedback and guidance of its users. The Budget Committee exists as a service, and for that service to be successful, it must receive input from the student body. Our executive board ran for office last year with a platform that promised students that we wanted to hear their voice – now’s your chance to talk to us.
My goal, just as is yours, is to benefit your organization. In order to do this however, I need your assistance and understanding. Please utilize the resources available at on this webpage in order to educate yourself regarding SGA and the budget process. Additionally, do not hesitate to contact me at sgabusiness@ithaca.edu with any questions or concerns.
Within the next few weeks, I will be releasing information regarding the Budget Committee, and a wealth of other important information. I am currently recruiting members for two positions, and if you are interested in either, forms are available in the “Downloads” section, to the right.
The first position is to become a Budget Committee member, and is open to students of any year and any major. This is a great opportunity to participate in a very diverse and integrated group on campus, with serves as a key component in the functionality of all organizations.
The second position offered is Financial Assistant. This position serves as a great way for an individual to participate in the daily operations of SGA, as well as become involved in many financial aspects of the organization. Please read the forms online for additional information regarding the positions, and if you are interested in either, I urge you to submit a completed application as soon as possible.
An additional important update which you should all be aware of concerns the budget process. The tentative date for the first Budget Committee meeting for the current academic year is set for September 16, 2009. This date is a goal, dependant of a variety of things occurring; however I am working as hard as I can to make sure this date is achieved.
Additionally, all forms have been updated to new versions, and are also available under the “Downloads” section to the right. You will notice version numbers attached to all documents, which can also be found within each document on the upper right-hand corner of the first page. The current versions for all available documents are v2, and no forms prior to this version will be accepted. This policy exists in order to create standardization among all budget proposal submissions, and also to make sure that all organizations are able to utilize the included features of the new forms.
I will be officially be accepting completed budget proposals starting today, and will send a confirmation when it has been thoroughly reviewed and accepted. Individual meeting times will be assigned as soon as I am able to officially set the first Budget Committee meeting, and I appreciate your patience and understanding during this time period.
It has been my personal pleasure to be able to meet many of you in person last semester, and I can speak for the other members of the Budget Committee when I say that we are all looking forward to seeing you once again throughout the coming year.
Sincerely,
Brian Keefe
Vice President, Business & Finance
Posted by VP of Business and Finance on 08/27/09
What I've Been Working On
For the past few weeks, I have been to working to obtain unused funds from various student organizations. I am very pleased to be able to inform you that this process was successful, and the Budget Committee will officially reconvene on Wednesday, April 1 for one final meeting this year.
Throughout the process of obtaining unused funding from organizations, the feedback which I received has allowed me to refine and improve the process to a state which I believe is fully-functional. Beginning with the Spring Budget Process, every organization allocated funds by the SGA will be required to submit a Financial Statement ensuring that all unused funds will return. I would like to thank all the organizations that participated in this process. Your support, understanding, and feedback are greatly appreciated.
If your organization is interested in obtaining funds for the remainder of the semester, please submit all budget proposals to me no later than this Monday, March 29 at 6:00 P.M. Updated forms have been officially posted to the SGA website for use when submitting a budget proposal. These forms are geared towards increased detail, so please utilize them to their fullest extent. The more detail your organization includes when submitting a budget proposal, the more information the Budget Committee has for reference when allocating funds.
I would also like to take this opportunity to inform you all that the Allocation Handbook has been officially approved by the Student Body Senate and is available to download from the Business & Finance section on the SGA website at www.ithaca.edu/sga. I encourage everyone to read through the document, as it includes all of the information you need to know regarding the budget process. I also greatly encourage all presidents and treasurers to attend "Funding 101", an optional Leadership Session which I will be teaching on Thursday, March 26 at 7:00 in Friends 307. During this session, I will be explaining the specifics behind the budget process as well as detailing the Allocation Handbook.
As for next year, it would be an extreme honor to be able to serve in this position once again and continue working to improve the budget process. It has been my goal since elected to give organizations an Allocation Handbook that detailed the budget process. Finally passed by the Student Body Senate, I have successfully accomplished that goal. There are many things that I would like to improve next year however, and I have many more ambitions for this position. To be reelected to Vice President of Business & Finance would give me the opportunity to continue to improve communication between SGA and student organizations, and streamline the budget process in many additional ways.
I would like to ask for your support during the SGA election process-- vote for the Fundamentalist Party. We strive to bring SGA back to basics, and focus our energy where student want it. By increasing communication, we will be able to accurately represent your voice, the thing that really matters on this campus.
Visit us at http://icfundamentalistparty.blogspot.com/
Or email us at icfundamentalistparty@gmail.com
Posted by VP of Business and Finance on 03/23/09
Important Updates
As many of you are aware, the Budget Committee has successfully allocated available all funds for use during the 2008-2009 academic year. Due to this, the Budget Committee is no longer able to continue to operate in its traditional sense, and must look to other means in order to be a continual resource to student organizations. In order to fulfill this mission, the committee is developing ways to recollect all unused funds in each organization's account. By doing this, all recollected funds will be able to put towards fund raising allocations for any interested organizations.
It is SGA policy that all funds allocated for the use of fund raising must be returned within 10 days after the event has ended. Any profits exceeding the allocated amount may be kept within the organization, however the original allocation must be returned.
This policy is in place in order to create a sustainable environment between student organizations and the SGA. All expenditures will be temporarily funded by an SGA interest-free loan. When the organization receives revenues in the amount of the loan, they must pay it back. This returned amount will then be able to be put towards funding other organizations. Any revenues exceeding the amount of the loan may be kept within the organization account for internal use.
In an effort to attain funds for the purpose of fund raising allocations later in the semester, I would like to ask for your help. Please understand that a number of stipulations are applied to each allocation that the Budget Committee makes. In recent allocations, I have made it a point to state these stipulations, but for clarification purposes, please observe the following:
All Operational Budget Allocations:
-All unused funds must be returned to the Student Government Association account within 30 days of the end of the current academic semester.
All Programming Budget Allocations:
-All unused funds must be returned to the Student Government Association account within 30 days after the event has ended.
All Travel Budget Proposals:
-All unused funds must be returned to the Student Government Association within 30 days after returning from this travel event.
All Fundraising Budget Proposals:
-All funds allocated towards a fundraising event must be returned in full to the Student Government Association within 10 after the event is held. Any funds raised in excess of the allocated amount may be kept within the organization's account for organizational use, however the entire allocation must be returned to the Student Government Association.
That being said, although these stipulations have always been in place, they have never been implemented their intended way. Taking into account the current financial situation, both within the both the Student Government Association and Ithaca College as a whole, it has become mandatory that these policies are enforced as soon as possible.
Throughout the next week, I will be in contact with all organization's on an individual basis in order to discuss the recollection procedure and to clarify and questions or concerns.
While the Budget Committee is in the process of restructuring under the principle of fund raising, I would like to take this opportunity to inform you of a few important updates. First and foremost, the Spring Budget Process will begin Monday, March 30, 2009.
The Spring Budget Process exists to give all student organizations the opportunity to receive funding for the 2009-2010 academic year. Any organization that plans on needing funding for the following two purposes is eligible to participate in the Spring Budget Process:
-Programming or travel events to be held within the first four weeks of the upcoming academic year
-Operational funds for the first semester of the upcoming academic year
The following is a tentative schedule for the remainder of the semester, including the Spring Budget Process:
-*Wednesday, March 18, 2009 - Spring Budget Process Leadership Session - 7:00 P.M. - Williams 205
-*Thursday, March 19, 2009 - Spring Budget Process Leadership Session - 12:00 P.M. - Williams 218
-Thursday, March 26, 2009 - Funding 101 Leadership Session - 7:00 P.M. - Friends 307
-Monday, March 30, 2009 - Spring Budget Process beings.
-Monday, April 6, 2009 by 6 P.M. - All budget proposals for the 2009-2010 academic year must be in. Any budget proposals for the 2009-2010 school year submitted past this deadline will not be heard until Fall 2009.
-Wednesday, April 8, 2009 - All meeting times will be assigned to organizations accepted into the Spring Budget Process.
-Saturday, April 11; Sunday, April 12; Monday, April 13, 2009 - The Budget Committee will meet with all organizations accepted into the Spring Budget Process.
-Monday, April 13, 2009 - All budget allocations will be announced via email.
-Friday, April 17, 2009 - All requests for appeals regarding allocations for the 2009-2010 academic year must be sent to Cornell Woodson via email at sgapresident@ithaca.edu.
-Tuesday, April 21, 2009 - All budget appeals will be heard by the SGA Senate at 8:15 P.M. in the Taughannock Falls meeting room, located on the third floor of the Campus Center..
All dates marked with an asterisk (*) denote mandatory attendance. All student organization Presidents and Treasurers who are planning on submitting a Spring Budget Proposal will be required to attend at least one of the two offered "Spring Budget Process Leadership Sessions". This is to ensure that all Student Organizations are aware of all policies associated with the Spring Budget Process, as well as all recent changes which have occurred within the Budget Committee. Attendance will be taken at each session, and a Spring Budget Proposal will not be accepted until the respective Presidents and Treasures have attended a session.
Also offered is an informational session titled "Funding 101". Although this is not a mandatory session, attendance is highly recommended. During this session, I will be detailing the new Allocation Handbook, as well as the entire budget process.
In addition, updated budget forms have recently been posted on the SGA website. This website is located at www.ithaca.edu/sga, and should be checked regularly in order to keep up-to-date will all important news updates. These forms must be used when submitting a Spring Budget Proposal, and will be the only forms accepted. Also, please be as detailed as possible when completing the required forms. It is up to the discretion of the Budget Committee to determine if a proposal is detailed enough to be placed on the Spring Budget Process agenda. In the event that a proposal is deemed vague or unclear, a proposal resubmission will be requested before it is accepted. All resubmissions must be received and accepted by the Monday, April 6 deadline.
Regarding the Allocation Handbook, it is currently under review by the Student Body Senate. I will be releasing the document to all student organizations as soon as it is approved.
Also, please be aware that effective March 1, 2009, there is no longer a photocopy subsidy in place for student organizations. Due to budget constraints within the SGA, it was deemed necessary to postpone the photocopy subsidy indefinitely. Starting March 1, 2009, all student organizations will be responsible for internally funding new photocopy charges incurred when utilizing the Copy Card.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me at sgabusiness@ithaca.edu. Thank you very much.
Sincerely,
Brian Keefe
Vice President, Business & Finance
Posted by VP of Business and Finance on 02/25/09
Welcome Back: Important Updates
Dear Student Organizations,
My name is Brian Keefe and with the start of the spring 2009 semester, I have replaced Miriam Feldman as the current Vice President of Business and Finance. Since the beginning of the school year, I have served under Miriam and have gained the experience necessary to make this a seamless transition for both the Student Government Association and more importantly, yourselves.
I plan on instituting many changes to the budget committee, and my goal is to provide you with a service that does its job to the best of its ability. In order to accomplish this goal however, I need to ask for your help. I need the cooperation and understanding of every student organization on the Ithaca College campus. I need feedback, opinions, questions, and guidance. If you have a suggestion, I want to hear it. If you have a question, I have the answer.
This is a time for change, and it will be a very exciting time for both yourself, and any student organization which you are a part of. Ladies and gentleman, the budget process is not a guessing game. The answers to your questions are right in front of you, and if you have to look any further then I have failed at my job.
In the next few days, a completely re-written Allocation Handbook will be posted to this web page under the Downloads section. Read it. All of it. This handbook will be replacing one over five years old, and a lot has changed in five years.
The handbook will contain all the rules and guidelines which the budget committee will follow, and those which I will enforce. The better you know them, the more prepared you will be to submit a budget proposal, and the more your organization will benefit. If any information needs clarification, my contact information is also available on this web page.
Please also be aware that all of the forms under the Downloads section will be replaced with new, updated forms. These forms will be posted along with the new handbook and there will be an announcement marking their arrival. Once these forms are available, they will be the only forms accepted by the budget committee.
There are also four big upcoming things which all student organizations need to be aware of. The first is that I am currently developing a list-serve which will allow me to quickly contact all presidents and treasurers of student organizations. This will allow me to keep you all informed regarding important news and information, and hopefully remove a lot of the guessing associated with the budget process.
The second piece of news is that the budget committee will officially reconvene next Wednesday, January 28 at 8:00. I am aware that organizations have already submitted budget proposals for this semester, and rest assured that I have not forgotten about them. All meeting times will be assigned via email this Monday, January 26 in the evening.
The email allocation system is also in the process of being completely redone. In the past, organizations were sent a very simplistic email containing only the amount of allocated funds and any accompanying stipulations. In an effort to eliminate confusion and increase feedback, all allocation emails will now contain exactly what the budget committee eliminated from the proposal, and the rationale behind why these items were eliminated.
The last important news update is regarding the Spring Budget Process. This year, the Spring Budget Process will begin March 30, 2009. This means that any budget proposals for 2009-2010 academic year must be emailed to me at sgabusiness@ithaca.edu by March 30, 2009. I will be posting much for detail regarding this process in the next few days, as well as sending it out via the aforementioned list-serve when it is available.
I am also on the search for a new Finance Assistant. If you are interested, more detail will be posted in the next few days.
It has been my personal pleasure to be able to meet many of you in person through my involvement with the budget committee. I would like to thank each of you for understanding that a transition is taking place, and although it will be quick, it wont be without notice. Your cooperation during the beginning of this semester is greatly appreciated, and I will keep you all up-to-date on the matter via the Student Government website. I can speak for the other members of the committee when I say that we are all looking forward to seeing you once again throughout the coming semester.
Sincerely,
Brian Keefe
Vice President of Business & Finance
Posted by VP of Business and Finance on 01/23/09
News from the VP of Business and Finance
Check back later for updated news from the VP of Business and Finance!
Posted by SGA on 08/23/08
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Profile
VP of Business and Finance
 Brian Keefe '11
Hometown: Simsbury, CT
School: Business
Majors: Accounting & Finance
Minor: Economics
Involvements: I am a member in the National Association of Black Accountants, Core Trading Consultants, SGA, and Habitat For Humanity
Random: I enjoy swimming, biking, skiing, running, and grilling
Contact
Office Hours:
Monday: 9-10
Tuesday: 11-12
Wednesday: 9-10, 1-2
Thursday: 11-12
Friday: 9-10, 1-2
Email: sgabusiness@ithaca.edu
Office: 607-274-3085
Posted by VP of Business and Finance on 01/21/09
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