STUDENT ACTIVITIES COMMISSION Gonzalez Discusses SAC Alumni Donation Option By Amanda McGrath Hoya Staff Writer

This past week, Junior Class Representative Marty LaFalce (COL ’03) met with Vice President of Student Affairs Juan Gonzalez to discuss the alumni donation program approved last fall that provides funding for student activities. They agreed to hold a future meeting between Gonzalez and the GUSA Funding Board as to where the money will go.

Under the proposal first initiated by LaFalce and then-GUSA Vice President Jacques Arsenault in the fall of 2000, an option to donate money to a general “Student Activities” fund would be placed on the university’s annual fund donor form that is sent out to recent alumni. After a one year pilot project that involved independent solicitation, the option will be on forms beginning in fall of 2002 under a checkbox marked “Student Activities and Student Life.”

The original plan was scrapped by the council of deans – comprised of deans from each school and other administrators – in the fall of 2000. The council voted in favor of an independent solicitation to alumni through the Office of Alumni University Relations.

The Annual Fund is Georgetown’s primary fundraising initiative, raising over $18 million annually for all four schools, campus ministry, financial aid, Lauinger Library, athletics and the Volunteer Public Services. Prior to the GUSA-backed proposal, alumni from the past ten years were given 11 options for their donations.

Last fall, LaFalce and Senior Representative Steve Glickman (COL’02) followed up on the issue. They noted that while there was minimal response from the solicitation, it did bring in new donors and did not detract from the money the Annual Fund currently receives. The pair went to the council of deans with the results, requesting a student activities checkbox on the annual fund donor form. The result was the council’s approval to present a separate solicitation this spring and place the checkbox on the form beginning next fall.

The current issue facing GUSA is where the money generated from the fund will go.

“I think Georgetown should build with this money,” LaFalce said. “We have a created a great start. It would be prudent to put the money toward endowment use.”

The plan would be to place the money in one of the university’s smaller endowments that can be created by specific campus groups. The university’s endowment acts in much the same way as a mutual fund. Organizations that receive donations can buy into the endowment and receive a return on their investment as it grows.

Gonzalez plans to consult with the GUSA funding board on the appropriate use of these funds, according to LaFalce.

“It would be best to put the money into the university’s current operating budget,” LaFalce said. “The money generated from the Student Activities Fee could then be put into the endowment. Money could then be spent on a specific event or project such as Georgetown Day or VPS vans [as needed].”