While education is the priority of attending a university, many students spend much of their time with student organizations, club sports, and other on-campus events. The funding for this part of the university experience comes from a small fraction of tuition and fees called the Student Activity Fee (SAF). Per an announcement from the Student Government Association (SGA) and the Office of Student Affairs, the SAF will begin to increase starting in Fall 2024.
The process of increasing the SAF started in December 2023 when the SGA cabinet drafted a formal proposal. In order to pass this bill, two senate meetings must be held to allow SGA senators to read and vote on the proposal. In order to get the proposal approved in time for the Board of Trustees meeting on February 13, an emergency senate meeting was held on January 9 to read the proposal and it was then approved at a regularly scheduled senate meeting on January 21. Once voted on by the senate, the proposal was sent to the Office of Student Life and Division of Student Affairs who reviewed and forwarded it to the Division of Finance for approval. It was lastly voted on and approved by the 40 members of the Board of Trustees.
The last change to the SAF was in the 2015-2016 academic year when it decreased from $245 to $230. The new increase will raise the SAF to $325 and will happen gradually over the next two years to help ease the upfront cost to students. Effective Fall 2024, the SAF will be $275 per semester and then fully increased to $325 in Fall 2025.
Each student’s SAF contributes to the SGA’s Student Activity Fund, managed by their budget committee. The current fund is modeled on $230 per student times 4000 students, resulting in an estimated $920,000. While maintaining the same amount of students for the purpose of this model, the total increase will result in an estimated $1,300,000 in the fund. The total $95 increase is broken down into three segments to explain the benefits to the student body.
The first $67.50 “one-time inflationary increase” will match the SAF to current inflation levels, taking reference from the United States Department of Labor and the cost of Founder’s Day Ball tickets. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ CPI Inflation Calculator, $230 in 2016 has the same buying power as just under $300 in January 2024. A general admission ticket in 2018 was $30 and was $55 this year, an 85% increase. Inflation has had a huge effect on the economy since 8 years ago when the last change in SAF was made, which was notably a decrease. To streamline the process and ensure consistency in future fee adjustments, the Board of Trustees has decided to incorporate the SAF into their annual percentage adjustments for all tuition and fee charges starting in 2026 once the increase is phased in.This will avoid the lengthy SGA approval process and any further drastic changes.
The other two segments of the increase are for athletic classes and more funding for student organizations. $12.50 will help cover the expenses of free athletic courses to help reintroduce the physical and mental health benefits of the previously required physical education courses removed in Fall 2022.
The last $15 will increase the budget available to student organizations on campus. With the creation of more student organizations every semester, additional funds are needed for the SGA to continue approving these new groups. The increase in the SAF will create more financing for the SGA to distribute to student groups and therefore allow organizations to expand and accommodate the growing student body.
When asked about their opinion on the increase, one first-year civil engineering student who is active in a few student organizations says they understand why the increase is happening and sympathizes with the SGA for asking for it. An upper-class Music and Technology student says, “I’m upset that I will have to pay more, but it makes sense […] I want more clubs to have more funding because that will be better for me and other students.” The Stute also spoke to the mother of a prospective student getting a campus tour. She explained that while she understands why the SGA needs more money, she expressed concern that the cost of attendance is already high and that it is unclear where most of the money goes.
Finding a balance between the cost of attendance and the funds needed on campus will always be a challenging task. The SGA hopes the benefits of these new funds will outweigh the additional costs to students’ families and that the phased increase will ease the financial burden. While it is assumed the funds will be distributed similarly to before, there are still questions on long-term impacts on the SGA’s budget. However these first steps will allow more room for budget negotiations and anyone with questions, comments or an interest in becoming involved in the fund distribution process should contact the Student Government Association at sga@stevens.edu.
