Fee Transparency Project

Present: Brynna Downey, Sue Carter, Alvin Ho, Andy Huynh, Chloe Mietzel, Gloria Qiu, Isaac Karth, Mathew Sarti, May Alvarez, Sarah Avdeef, Venkatesh Nagubandi, Lisa Bishop, Lydia Jenkins-Sleczkowski, Lucy Van Doorn (guest)

Welcome and Introductions
Approval of Agenda and 11/06/20 Minutes
1. Sarah motions to approve the agenda, Mathew seconds. Motion passes.
2. Gloria motions to approve the minutes, Alvin seconds. Motion passes.
Funding Call Preparation (1:00 - 1:30)
1. Approve the Funding Call Proposal
  1. Brynna updates the group about the edits and changes made since the group’s last meeting.
  2. Isaac asks for clarification regarding the physical safety wording of the checklist.
    1. Isaac suggests adding a checkbox regarding student privacy and softwares.
    2. Venkatesh and Matthew express concern about using software to monitor students and data. Venkatesh adds that he doesn’t foresee this being an issue with student-focused events.
    3. Brynna suggests incorporating this into the Methodology section.
    4. Isaac says that this could work, but would word it as data tracking or collection. Venkatesh adds noting that this as an idea in the funding proposal.
    5. Brynna points out that this would not be applicable to all proposals, such as staff or salary requests.
    6. Isaac says that this question would just require disclosure if police or surveillance are used.
  3. May motions to approve the funding call proposal, Mathew seconds. No objections, motion passes.
2. Approve the Funding Call Letter
  1. Isaac motions to approve the funding call letter, Andy seconds. No objections, motion passes.
  2. Brynna asks the group to note the workshop dates in their calendars and attend to give advice to proposal authors.
Lucy Van Doorn: Miscellaneous and Course Fee Advisory Committee (MCFAC) (1:30-2:00)
1. Group members introduce themselves.
2. Lucy V is looking for 3-5 students to sit on the MCFAC.
3. The chair and vice chair historically sit on the committee, but Lucy V has found student input on the committees to be very important. Planning and Budget is very interested in hearing what students have to say about the policies and requirements each year.
4. In 2021, no course fees will be charged to students, they will be covered by the CARES Act. However, they will still exist, and the committee will review course fees this year. They have strict guidelines: meant to recover actual costs associated with the materials. Not meant to generate revenue. 284 total course fees are currently approved, most of them are in Arts Division. Cannot cover salaries.
5. Miscellaneous Fees are broader, and have fewer policy restrictions. These are not mandatory for enrolled students, they are voluntary fees. Meant to cover costs, and can also include salary and benefits. For example, room rental at the Hay Barn for community rentals. Revenue can be generated through miscellaneous fees, unlike course fees. This committee talks about misc fees once a year, with one in person meeting.
6. MCFAC has advisory recommendations ability, and the Chancellor approves fees each year. The chancellor was very engaged with the process last year.
7. The course fee committee meets close to finals time for students, but Lucy V offers additional time to be available for input and feedback from students.
8. Brynna shares that she served on the MCFAC last year and learned a lot about units and the campus budgets.
9. Brynna says that she will be in touch by Wednesday if people want to participate.
Announcements & Updates
1. Other announcements
2. Lydia shares about the Executive Director of Career Success student feedback sessions.
3. Brynna circles back to the budget regarding proposals. Last year, a discussion was whether to ask people to standardize their budget sheet when some units did not provide clear information about their budgets, and there were discrepancies between amount asked for and their list. Lisa has made an updated budget sheet.
  1. Alvin shares that standardizing documents makes it more easy to read and evaluate.
  2. Isaac agrees that this is a good idea, but possibly leave an option for people to elaborate more thoroughly. A standard way to compare documents is often valuable.
  3. Brynna amends the funding letter to reflect this new budget template requirement.
  4. Venkatesh motions to approve the new change, Sarah seconds.
Adjournment
1. May motions to adjourn, Mathew seconds. No objections, motion passes.

Upcoming Guests/Topics:

Lisa’s SSF presentation (November 20)
Interim Vice Chancellor Baszile (November 20)
Associate Vice Chancellor and Dean of Students Naiman (December 4)
Kimberly Register