Nobody likes mandatory fees, especially when you don't know what you're paying for. In the case of the student activity fee, however, your payment may be providing you with more opportunities than you realize.
Student Association, with support from senior resident assistants, is holding a workshop at 7 p.m. Thursday Sept. 26 in the Niagara Hall Main Lounge to explain exactly what your yearly mandatory student activity fee allows you to do on campus. “[SA] is basically this overarching body that governs what student groups do,” SRA senior Marty Rogachefsky said. “It funds most student organizations and is the one responsible for the approximately $200 that you pay in student activity fees.”
The program is primarily aimed at educating freshmen on the different things that SA provides for the student body - including the different committees, the litigation services and undergraduate research and travel grants the organization provides.
The presentation will focus on the role the student activity fee plays in the funding of those services and how it supports programs like Geneseo Late Knight, Activity Commission's concerts, Upstate Escapes, media organizations including The Lamron and GSTV, Inter-Residence Council Academic Affairs Committee, GOLD Leadership Program and some club sports. “The fees are a part of running the college,” Rogachefsky said. “We wouldn't have the college community that we have now without them.” The program will also explain how SA supervises standing committees, and approximately 40 clubs on campus, by helping them form contracts and facilitate cooperation with SA Graphics, SA Tech Services, Campus Auxiliary Services Catering, and Campus Scheduling and Special Events Office.
The presentation is designed to be interactive and will also give freshmen an opportunity to become familiar with members of their student government. Students are encouraged to voice their opinions and ask questions during the workshop.
“SA is so, so involved in every aspect of college life,” Rogachefsky said. “And I think if students are able to understand the structure of SA as a whole, then they'll be able to take full advantage of all the different things that are available to them.”