By Daniel Johnson-Kim, Editor in Chief
The Students’ Association Congress voted to grant money to help a student organization attend a conference and appointed two new members to the Congress on Wednesday.
After debating numbers for about an hour, SA voted to give more than $99 per member of the ACU student chapter of the Society for Human Resource Management to help pay for the group’s trip to the Human Resource Southwest Regional Conference in Fort Worth. The maximum SA voted it would provide was more than $1,100 if 12 people attended the conference, which will be on Oct. 14-16.
Congress decided on the dollar amount that would come from the Student Request fund-a sum of money set aside in SA’s budget to distribute among student groups-after voting each person on the trip should be required to spend $75 of their own money to attend the conference. The motion to allot the funds passed 31-2-5.
Chris King, junior human resource management major from Houston and president of the ACU SHRM chapter, made the case for the student organization, laying out the expected costs of the conference and the amount he was requesting.
If 12 people go on the trip, the overall expected cost would be more than $2,900. King said he hoped SA would help with more than $1,800 of the cost.
“It was definitely nice to get the money,” King said. “But with paying $75 a person, it’s weird that they did it that way because there are so many variable costs.”
Initially, King hoped none of the students traveling to the conference would have to pay out of their own pocket, and during debate of the motion, showed concern on the effect SA’s decision would have on members’ willingness to attend the conference.
Treasurer and secretary Rachel Foster, senior human resource management, was at King’s side and helped in asking Congress to support what she called a lucrative chance for students to get exposure to opportunities they would not have at ACU.
“I went to this conference last year and I got two different internship opportunities offered to me,” Foster said. Several members of Congress had qualms with the fact none of the students attending would pay any money for the conference if Congress allotted the initial amount King requested. One key point repeated was that this conference was exclusive.
“It’s important for individuals to contribute for exclusive conferences,” said Sophomore Sen. Rachel Morris. “I feel like it’s standard to have to give a little in order to gain something for yourself.”
Congress also voted to appoint Randy Woods, senior electronic media major from East Falls Church, Va., as a Morris Center Representative, and Jereme Mosley, sophomore communication and family studies major from Houston, as the Sherrod Building Representative.
