George Mason University: Student Involvement
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Student Funding Board

Home Student Funding Board
About Our Team
2017-2018 Updates
Process/Guidelines
Deadlines
Appeal Process
FAQs
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About Our Team

Registered Student Organizations (RSOs) are able to apply for funding through the Student Funding Board (SFB). These funds allow students to hold events and programs sponsored by their organization. The SFB of George Mason University is a branch of Student Government and is comprised of three appointed Student Government members, as well as a representative from the Registered Student Organization Leadership Team.

SFB Fall 2017 Meetings: Tuesdays at 4:30pm

Information about required trainings and registering to attend can be found on the Fiscal Management section of the website. https://si.gmu.edu/registered-student-organizations/spending-money/

2017-2018 Student Funding Board Members:

  • Obum Egolum, Chair, Secretary of Administrative & Financial Affairs for Student Government
  • Jose Espinal, SG Representative
  • Nick Chen, SG Representative
  • Zahra Hamidaddin, RSO Leadership Team Representative
  • Rolando Flores Santos, RSO Leadership Team Representative

Fall 2017 Office Hours:

  • Monday: 9:00a-5:00pm
  • Wednesday: 9:00a-5:00pm
  • Friday: 9:00am-12:00pm

If none of these times work for you please send an email to sfb@gmu.edu to see if we can find another time to chat or communicate via email.

To better serve the needs of the Student Organizations, each member serves at least four office hours per week, which are held in the Student Funding Board (SFB) Office in Student Involvement (The HUB, Suite 2300). This schedule is subject to change, so check back regularly.

2017-2018 Updates

SFB CHANGES FOR THE 2017-2018 YEAR

  • There is a $250 MAXIMUM per person for travel funding. This maximum is PER PERSON and will not depend on the organization, meaning that even if a student applies from various RSOs they will still be held to the $250 limit. ALL MEMBERS WHO RECEIVE TRAVEL FUNDING MUST BE LISTED ON THE ORGANIZATION’S ROSTER ON GET CONNECTED
  • All events must be FREE and open to the Mason community; no closed events are permitted
  • All events held off-campus may be subject to review for a limited allocation and may be denied altogether
  • SFB will stick to the following meal limits when approving funding for food:
    • Breakfast – $8/person
    • Lunch – $10/person
    • Dinner – $15/person
  • Honorariums cannot be awarded to any faculty or staff at George Mason University
  • There is a $25 minimum for requests for ALL PURCHASE ORDERS
  • Funding for Giant is available via reimbursement only, no purchase orders will be issued for Giant
  • All contracts (and other documentation) must be included with the Student Funding Board requests- any person who is receiving a payment for an agreed upon price needs the corresponding contract and insurance
  • TAX EXEMPT INFORMATION: 
    • Catering and food/beverage expenses should not include sales tax
    • All purchase orders will be tax exempt
    • Reimbursements are not considered payments from the university and are thus not tax exempt. Catering is the only exception
    • Grocery items or unprepared food do not count as catering
  • ALL STUDENT FUNDING BOARD EVENTS MUST BE ON GET CONNECTED BEFORE RECEIVING ANY ALLOCATION
Process/Guidelines

All events MUST be FREE, as SFB funds will not be used for events where an admission fee is being charged.

SFB will NOT be awarded for:

  • Formals/Banquets
  • National Dues
  • Insurance
  • Students & Staff parking on campus
  • Regular Meetings / Events

We STRONGLY encourage RSOs to collaborate and partner on programs and events. This allows for funds to be used in a much better way and reduces the number of similar events happening on campus. Working together will allow for event planning responsibilities to be divided amongst the organizations, reducing the workload, while getting more people to attend and enjoy the event.

REQUIRED TRAININGS

  • Presidents & Treasurers for each RSO MUST complete the required Fiscal Management Workshop(s) in order for your organization to be eligible to receive SFB funds. Failure to do so will result in no funds being allocated to your organization until it is completed.
  • Presidents & Treasurers are REQUIRED to complete the required Fiscal Management Workshop(s) at the beginning of EACH academic year as some things change.
  • For more information on the Fiscal Management Workshop(s), please visit: HERE

SFB CHANGES FOR THE 2017-2018 YEAR – See the “Updates” tab

Student Funding Board Process

Application process:

  • Applications must be submitted (BY PRESSING SUBMIT AT THE END OF THE GET CONNECTED APPLICATION) by the President or Treasurer by 11:59pm (EST) the night of the deadline for events that are considered for that deadline. For a complete list of information on deadlines please go to this link: https://si.gmu.edu/get-connected-to-funding/sfb-deadlines/
  • Event is submitted on Get Connected
  • If the request is over $500.00, the RSO advisor also submits the “Advisor Approval Form” on Get Connected
  • Student Funding Board will review the application the week AFTER the deadline (applications are not reviewed on a rolling basis)
  • 10-14 business days after the deadline, the President and Treasurer of the organization will receive an email from SFB@gmu.edu regarding the allocation
  • The allocation will contain information regarding the amount that is allocated OR it will be a request for further information

PAYMENT COORDINATION:

  • IT IS THEN UP TO THE ORGANIZATION TO CONTACT THE BUSINESS MANAGER (sibudget@gmu.edu) AND ARRANGE HOW THE FUNDING WILL BE SPENT (purchase order or reimbursement)
  • IT IS UP TO THE ORGANIZATION TO SUBMIT THE NECESSARY PAPERWORK TO ARRANGE PAYMENT TO THE BUSINESS MANAGER IN A TIMELY MANNER(at least three business days prior to the event)

AFTER THE EVENT:

  • Submit the original receipt and all documentation to the business manager in Student Involvement
  • Submit the SFB Event Evaluation form within 10 business days of the event

SAMPLE APPLICATION

Below you will find an example of a strong SFB application. This model should be used as an example of what a COMPLETE application looks like, as well as what the board is looking for in the application attachments:

Chinese Student Scholars Association Application

Chinese Student Scholars Association Attachment 1 – this showed the board that their space was already reserved

Chinese Student Scholars Association Attachment 2 – this is a GREAT example of a breakdown of expenses. It helps the board know exactly what is needed and how much.

Attachments are required as part of the application and these are strong examples of what should be attached. Other ideas might be invoices from vendors, event flyers, etc.

GENERAL RULES/GUIDELINES for FUNDING of ALL REQUESTING ORGANIZATIONS

Tier 1 RSOs can receive up to $1,000 per academic year and must adhere to the following spending guidelines:

  • Catering orders under $250
  • Office Supplies may be requested once per academic year. The Maximum Allocation for this will be $100 per ACADEMIC YEAR. This allocation WILL BE considered part of the $1,000 maximum.
  • Honorarium Fees (limited at $500/academic year)- Please note that honorarium payment requests MUST be submitted at least 30 days prior to the event. This means you MUST apply well in advance for funding.
  • Event Advertising (Flyers/Posters/Banners)

Tier 2 RSOs can receive up to $3,000 per academic year, but CANNOT request funds for travel/conference expenses and must adhere to the following spending guidelines:

  • Catering (be mindful of price per person when applying). Please be aware that SFB will adjust accordingly.
  • Police/Security
  • Event Advertising (Flyers/Posters/Banners)
  • Events Production, Events Management/Facility Fees
  • Office Supplies may be requested once per academic year. The Maximum Allocation for this will be $100 per ACADEMIC YEAR. This allocation WILL BE considered part of the $3,000 maximum.
  • Honorarium/Speaker/Performance Fees- Please note that contracts and honorarium payment request forms MUST be submitted at least 30 days prior to the event. This means you MUST apply well in advance for funding.

Tier 3 RSOs can receive up to $5,000 per academic year and MAY request funds for travel/conference expenses and must adhere to the following spending guidelines:

  • Catering (be mindful of price per person when applying). Please be aware that SFB will adjust accordingly.
  • Event Advertising (Flyers/Posters/Banners)
  • Events Production, Events Management/Facility Fees
  • Conferences/ Leadership Programs/ Competitions (Maximum Allocation of $1,000 per ACADEMIC YEAR). Travel Authorizations MUST be submitted at least 7 Days before traveling.  This will be included in the maximum available for a student organization to apply for.
  • Police/Security
  • Office Supplies may be requested once per academic year. The Maximum Allocation for this will be $100 per ACADEMIC YEAR. This allocation WILL BE considered part of the $5,000 maximum.
  • Honorarium/Speaker/Performance Fees- Please note that contracts and honorarium payment request forms MUST be submitted at least 30 days prior to the event. This means you MUST apply well in advance for funding.

REVENUE GENERATION

Events charging admission will NOT be eligible to receive SFB funds. If you plan on charging for events then Self-Generated Revenue (SGR) MUST be used. If you’re organization has no SGR then we will need to have an explanation on how you plan to pay for your event so that charges don’t start showing up in your account with no deposits paying for the charges.

**Please also refer to the “Cash Handling & Wristband Procedures for Recognized Student Organizations” section of the Mason Event Procedures & Guidelines**

REVIEW PROCESS

The SFB committee will review requests every TWO weeks (with the exception of holiday breaks). Requests are not reviewed on a rolling basis as they are received.

  • Purchase Order (PO) Requests must be submitted at least THREE BUSINESS days prior to the event. Invoices/receipts as a result of a PO must be submitted IMMEDIATELY after the event.
  • Contracts must be submitted NO LATER THAN 10 BUSINESS DAYS IN ADVANCE. This means you MUST apply for a deadline well in advance.
  • All other payments and reimbursement requests of $1,999 or less (not involving contracts)-must be submitted within THREE weeks after the event or reimbursements will not be granted. It is important that we receive them in a timely manner for budgeting purposes.
  • All orgs are required to submit an event evaluation form NO LATER THAN 10 DAYS after the event, if not submitted additional funding requests will not be approved until received.

**All documentation mentioned above can be found in the Fiscal Management section of the website or in the RSO Fiscal Handbook online.  Registered Student Organizations who fail to comply with any of these deadlines listed above will lose access to funds for the remainder of the school year.**

Deadlines

Student Funding Board Deadlines

  • All Student Funding Board requests must be prior to the event, there is no retroactive funding.  
  • This means that you must submit an application before your event happens in order to be eligible to receive a reimbursement after your allocation has been sent by SFB (see below for timelines). 
  • Remember applications are not reviewed until after the deadline, regardless of when it was turned in. Applications must be turned in by 11:59pm (EST) of the deadline date. Applications are not reviewed on a rolling basis
  • Organizations submitting applications where travel is involved, you MUST build in enough time for when you apply to account for applications to be reviewed, receive an allocation, and to input travel into the University Travel Request System at least 7 days prior to traveling. 
  • Applications that need contracts will not receive allocated funding until contracts are input into the Dynamic Forms contract system.

Please keep in mind that when submitting your application, the committee will send out allocation information 10-14 business days after the deadline. Take the following timelines into account when applying:

FALL 2017 Deadlines

Deadline Dates  Event Dates Eligible for Deadline When SFB reviews When allocations are sent 
September 15th all events 10/2 or after by September 22nd by September 29th
September 29th all events 10/14 or after by October 6th by October 13th
October 13th all events 10/28 or after by October 20th by October 27th
October 27th all events 11/11 or after by November 3rd by November 10th
November 10th all events 11/25 or after by November 17th by November 22nd
November 17th* all events 12/9 or after by December 1st by December 8th
December 1st**  all events for January 2018-February 16th by December 8th by December 15th

Remember to allow time for appeals, purchase orders etc. It is not up to SFB or Student Involvement to ensure that both funding and spending are aligned for your event
*November 17th deadline is the last deadline for events in Fall 2017, remember SFB does not meet during scheduled University breaks

** December 1st is for events in Spring of 2018, January through Friday, February 16th

 

SPRING 2018 Deadlines:

 Deadline Dates  Event Dates Eligible for Deadline  When SFB reviews  When allocations are sent
February 2nd all events 2/17 or after by February 9th by February 16th
February 16th all events 3/9 or after by February 23rd by March 2nd
March 2nd* all events 3/23 or after by March 9th by March 16rd
March 16th** all events 4/6 or after by March 23rd by March 30th
April 6th all events 4/27 or after by April 13th by April 20th
April 20th*** all events 5/11 through 6/1 by April 27th by May 4th
May 4th**** all events 6/1 through 9/15 by May 11th by May 18th

*March 2nd deadline conflicts with Spring Break, remember SFB is does not meet during scheduled University breaks, please take this into account when applying. March 2nd is the deadline for all iWeek events on Friday, April 6th.

**March 16th is the deadline for all iWeek events, April 7th- through April 14th

***April 20th is the last deadline for events during the Spring Semester

****May 4th (These events include ALL Welcome2Mason events, Heritage month events etc. The Welcome2Mason committee will not allocate any funding to organizations)

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

ALL ORGANIZATIONS MUST HAVE THE EVENT LISTED ON GET CONNECTED IN ORDER TO RECEIVE AN SFB FUNDING

The Welcome2Mason committee will no longer provide funds for RSO events during Welcome2Mason.

**PLEASE NOTE: The MAY 4th DEADLINE is for if you’re planning on having any events or need funding during the summer & first month and half of the following fall semester.  This includes all Summer Conferences/Travel, Welcome2Mason events, Heritage Month Events, etc.  If applications are not received by this deadline they will not be considered during the Fall 2018 semester.

Appeal Process

APPEAL PROCESS

  • TO APPEAL: It is the President and/or Treasurer’s responsibility to respond to this ORIGINAL email with the documents / information that was requested. This should be done within 7 BUSINESS days of the original email
  • Once the information is received then SFB can allocate the funding

If your organization receives an allocation and you would like to appeal the decision you must do the following:

  1. First, make sure you’re within the Appeals time window, which is that your appeal must received BEFORE the next funding deadline or within two weeks from when your allocation was sent (whichever comes first).
  2. Second, make sure you have read your allocation email completely and checked under the “Important Comments” section.  This is where in the email that an explanation is provided as to what information is needed or why funding was not approved.
  3. After reading through that section, you can respond directly to the email you received providing the information requested.  Information can be provided in the following formats and either dropped off at the office or emailed as an attachment…
    • Estimates from a vendor
    • Links to websites with the amounts provided
    • Screenshots of items being purchased
    • Cost breakdown with detailed numbers
    • GMU Contract that is signed by the performer
  4. Once that information is submitted the board members will review it at their next scheduled meeting and get back to you with an updated allocation.
  5. After receiving the updated allocation and approval you’re able to move forward with the planning for your event

NOTE: If you’re going through the appeals process you should not be advertising your event.  Advertising can begin once you have secured the funds necessary to support your event. 

FAQs

SFB Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

  1. My organization is a Registered Student Organization (RSO), is there money automatically in my account each year?
  2. I submitted an application, does that mean I automatically received those funds?
  3. What happens if I spend money without having funds allocated through SFB or Self-Generated Revenue?
  4. I submitted my application on September 12th and the deadline is September 20th, why hasn’t my application been reviewed yet?
  5. How do I change the date of my event?
  6. How do I let SFB know that an event has been canceled and SFB funds are no longer needed?
  7. What are the funding deadlines for this semester-Spring 2015?
  8. What happens over the holiday breaks with SFB requests (i.e. Thanksgiving, Spring Break)
  9. How far in advance can you apply for funding for an event?
  10. After I receive my allocation from SFB, how do I access the funds?
  11. How do you appeal an SFB decision?
  12. Do you have an example of a strong SFB application that was allocated funding?

1.  My organization is a Registered Student Organization (RSO), is there money automatically in my account each year?

  • NO! RSOs don’t have money automatically in their accounts each year.  RSOs who do collect dues, sponsor fundraisers, receive donations/sponsors, etc. should have funds available in their on campus account.  These funds are called self-generated revenus (SGR) and money is left at the end of one fiscal year it is rolled over to the following year and available for use.  These funds must be spent in compliance with the university and Commonwealth’s spending guidelines.

2.  I submitted an application, does that mean I automatically received those funds? 

  • NO. Groups that submit applications DO NOT automatically receive funds.  You must wait to spend money until you have received an official allocation email from the Student Funding Board (SFB) stating how much your organization has been awarded and how it can be spent.  Spending money prior to approval will not allow you to be reimbursed.

3.  What happens if I spend money without having funds allocated through SFB or Self-Generated Revenue?

  • Your organizations account will be put on hold and no business will be allowed to take place.  The hold will remain until the organization deposits funds into your on campus account to offset the negative balance.

4.  I submitted my application on September 12th and the deadline is September 25th, why hasn’t my application been reviewed yet? 

  •  Your application has not been reviewed because all applications submitted between deadlines are not reviewed until the following deadline.  This means they are all held until the meeting following the deadline.  If you need your application reviewed earlier it is up to you to apply with more than enough time so you don’t run into a time crunch.

5.  How do I change the date of my event? 

  •  Send an email to sfb@gmu.edu to let them know the date change so they can update their spreadsheets.  Also, make sure that you let the services you might have booked (i.e. Catering, Events Production, Police) know that you have changed your date.

6.  How do I let SFB know that an event has been canceled and SFB funds are no longer needed?

  •  Send an email to sfb@gmu.edu to let them know the event has been canceled so they can update their spreadsheets.  Also, make sure that you let the services you might have booked (i.e. Catering, Events Production, Police) know that you have canceled your event.  Also, be aware that some offices that you book services through have cancellation deadlines.  Make sure your organization pays attention to them so you do not receive a fine.

7.  What are the funding deadlines/applications due for the Fall 2015 semester?

  • September 11th (for all events post October 1st)
  • September 25th
  • October 9th
  • October 23rd
  • November 6th
  • November 13th (due to the Thanksgiving holiday break)
  • December 4th (deadline for events January 1st through February 29th)

Please note that SFB meets every Wednesday at 3:00pm.  This means that applications will be reviewed the following Wednesday after the deadline.  Allocations will be sent out by the Friday after applications reviewed. So looking at a full week turn around from the application deadline.

SFB applications are due by 5:00pm for the funding deadline they are applying for.  Note that all online applications are time stamped.  Failure to meet this time will result in your application NOT being reviewed.

8.  What happens over the holiday breaks with SFB requests (i.e. Thanksgiving, Spring Break)?

  •  All applications submitted over the holiday breaks are reviewed at the next deadline following the holiday.

9.  How far in advance can you apply for funding for an event? 

  •  We recommend that you apply for a deadline that is at least 2-4 weeks before your event date.  However, it would be most ideal for you to apply 4-6 weeks in advance.  The earlier you apply the better and the more time you have to properly plan your event.

10.  After I receive my allocation from SFB, how do I access the funds? 

  • Important: Just because you receive an allocation it does not mean that SFB will arrange for items to be paid. Depending on what you applied for to receive funds it will impact how you access these funds.   Please reference the Fiscal Management Handbook on how to spend the funds you have been allocated. You can do so HERE.

11.  How do you appeal an SFB decision?

  • You can send an email to sfb@gmu.edu and share your reason for appeal.  Also, please provide any additional documentation that will be helpful in aiding the boards decision (i.e. invoices, itemized receipts and online screenshots, etc.). For more information on appeals, please visit: SFB APPEALS. The deadline for SFB appeals is either that they must be received by the next funding deadline or within two weeks from when your allocation was sent, which ever comes first.

12. Do you have an example of a strong SFB application that was allocated funding? 

  • Yes! Below you will find an example of a strong SFB application. This model should be used as an example of what a COMPLETE application looks like, as well as what the board is looking for in the application attachments:
  • Attachments are required as part of the application and these are strong examples of what should be attached. Other ideas might be invoices from vendors, event flyers, etc. A clear breakdown is needed to receive full funding.
Contact Us

If you have any questions or comments for the Student Funding Board, please fill out the contact form below! A member of the board will be in contact shortly!

 

You must include your organization name in the message!

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