By Roderick Macioch
News Assistant
During its weekly meeting on Wednesday, April 6, the Student Finance Board (SFB) approved funding for numerous events, ensuring a busy campus calendar as the semester begins to draw to a close.
The first proposed event was Student United Way’s “Agents of Change: The Change Starts with You!” The event will feature an appearance by nationally-recognized author and leadership consultant Joshua Fredenburg.
According to the request form presented by Student United Way, the goal of the event is “to highlight the importance of service by the usage of effective leadership.” Specifically, Fredenburg will assist students “with their efforts (to) create and build leaders with (a) passionate, powerful and transformational leadership lecture that will empower, enlighten, and elevate students.”
When the time came to vote, the requested $4,020.81 was granted, with the stipulation that further negotiations are made with Fredenburg in an effort to lower his $4,000 appearance fee.
The event is scheduled for Wednesday, April 27, from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the Library Auditorium.
Representatives of PRISM entered to propose their plan for its Queer Musician Showcase, featuring performances by local artists Danielle Grubb, Kid in the Attic and Roswell Debacle. As stated in PRISM’s proposal, the event “seeks to further a dialogue on the culture surrounding local queer communities by giving (three) nearby queer-centered bands a platform to present their work.” Thus, the event “simultaneously provides entertainment for the TCNJ student body, but perhaps more importantly it serves as an opportunity for empowerment for LGBTQ+ artists and fans,” according to the form.
The board unanimously voted to fully fund the event in the amount of $1,423, most of which covers the booking fees of the three acts.
The event will take place on Friday, April 29, from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., in the Kendall Hall Black Box Theatre.
Student Government (SG) then proposed its Baseball Tailgate, co-sponsored by the Office of Student Affairs. The event seeks to “build unity and school spirit through food, games (and) activities, and to encourage attendance of the baseball games happening that day,” according to the request form.
When the time came to vote, the requested $3,720.61 was granted, which will pay for food, a WTSR disc jockey (DJ) and other expenses.
The event is scheduled for Saturday, April 23, from noon to 2:30 p.m. in Lot 12.
SG then requested funding for Spring Finals Fest 2016. Finals Fest “is a traditional event that occurs every semester to help students de-stress during one of the most stressful weeks of the semester. Student Government has put a lot of thought and careful planning into the events involved in Finals Fest to ensure that students can benefit from the activities by relaxing and having some fun,” according to the request form.
The board voted to grant funding in the amount of $1,470.80 to pay for pizza, ice cream and smoothies, which will be featured in giveaways throughout the week.
The event will take place from Tuesday, May 10, to Friday, May 13. Activities will begin at 9 a.m. and carry on throughout each day in various locations around campus, mainly on the Green Hall Lawn.
SG also requested funding for TCNJ Cares Week’s Lions’ Walk for Hope that takes place during the week. The week is designed “to raise awareness, break down stigmas, build support in regards to mental illness on campus and to send a message of hope to any and all students in need,” according to the request form.
The board voted to grant SG’s request in the amount of $1,704.27.
The event is scheduled to take place from Monday, May 2, to Thursday, May 5, with events held at various times throughout the week in various locations on campus.
Members of the Asian American Association (AAA) proposed funding for emcees — transition acts which will be featured segments of AAA’s Mystique of the East. According to the request form, the event “is an annual show that features cultural performances with origins from various Asian countries, including China, India, the Philippines, Korea and Japan. The emcee part between each act brings all the acts together through a cohesive storyline.” The show itself was funded in a previous meeting, but emcees are an additional aspect of the show which had not been included in the original proposal.
Full funding for emcees in the amount of $223 was granted, which will cover expenses such as including knee and elbow pads and neon spray paint — these will be used during the emcee segments to connect the storylines of the different acts.
The event will take place on Saturday, April 23, in Kendall Hall. Doors will open at 7 p.m. and the show will start at 8 p.m.
Inter-Greek Council requested funding for Airband, which will be co-sponsored by the Inter-Fraternity Council, the Panhellenic Association and the Unified Greek Council. The event is designed to “display the creative talent of the fraternity and sorority community in (the Council’s) closing event of Greek Week. Airband is an open event to which Greeks and non-Greeks alike are encouraged to attend and enjoy the entertainment provided by each team,” according to the request form.
The board voted to fully fund Inter-Greek Council’s request in the amount of $6,289.96 to cover the costs of expenses including security, sound, stage and lighting.
The event is scheduled to take place on Friday, April 29, in the South Gym in Packer Hall at 6 p.m.
The final order of business was the Association of Students for Africa (ASFA)’s proposal for its Akwaaba Celebration. Funding for decorations and acrobats were tabled due to high prices in a previous meeting. Akwaaba, which translates to “welcome,” is still planned to include “a variety of African-inspired performances, food and music,” according to the request form.
Additionally, “this event will showcase to the (College) community that AFSA has arrived and is fully operating to bring a taste of the African culture to the campus, (and) will foster the appreciation for diversity on this campus,” according to the form.
The board decided that satisfactory cost-cutting had been achieved and voted to grant funding in the amount of $3,290.18, which will cover the costs of drinks, utensils, decorations and acrobats from Zuzu Acrobats Inc.
The event will be held on Saturday, April 23, from 7 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., in the Decker Social Space.
*Even though SFB agrees to finance certain events, there is no guarantee these events will take place. The approval only makes the funds available.
