Student organizations are the life fabric of a university, providing both support and opportunities for those who join. But starting one can be a daunting task, so how exactly can one turn a collective interest into an LSU-recognized student organization?
It’s actually quite simple. Gather three students to act as officers, an LSU faculty member to act as an advisor and a club constitution then submit them all to LSU Campus Life. Once approved, a new student organization is officially formed.
Once established, the new student organization must turn its mind to funding. Three avenues for cash are most common.
The first is the Programming Support and Initiative Fund. Operated by Student Government, this fund is used to support new student organizations, recreational sports club teams, or student organizations that want to host conferences on campus or late night events.
Another option provided by SG is the Organization Relief Fund. The ORF is used to help student organizations with travel expenses. To receive funds a trip must already be planned and budgeted, be compliant with LSU’s travel regulations under LSU Permanent Memorandum 13 and be covered by travel insurance.
Finally, a student organization can receive funding by applying directly to the Student Senate. To do so, a student organization must show that it has exhausted any other possible funding options. Only then will the Senate consider the request.
Student organizations also have the option to raise money from the public by hosting fundraisers. Student organizations that fundraise themselves can also use it as evidence to receive further funding from SG.
Between funding from SG and the public, most student organizations are capable of hosting their own events and traveling to conferences and competitions. But intercollegiate sports clubs, due to their high travel and equipment costs, may require additional funding. That’s where the University Recreation Center comes in.
To join the 30 clubs that currently receive funding from the UREC, a student organization must accomplish a few things. They must be of a sport nature; the UREC must have facilities to support that sport; the student organization must be at least one year old; and the organization must be willing to compete and host events. They must also be recommended by the Sports Club Council and approved by the UREC.
A big part of the approval process for the UREC is the knowledge that sports clubs are inherently more risky than traditional student organizations.
“A sport can inherently pose a greater risk so there’s a second level of engagement,” said UREC Director Laurie Braden.
The UREC demonstrates this second level of engagement through other measures including mandating sports teams take charter buses to events in an effort to reduce accidents.
“We want to provide some risk management for them [students] to where they don’t have to worry about driving their own vehicles. They can just rely on the bus to drive them safely from point A to point B,” said UREC Assistant Director Steven Knecht, who helps sports clubs coordinate resources to make sure they are prepared for competitions.
This includes connecting clubs with travel agents, ensuring transportation, handling paperwork and anything assisting in the operation of a club. Knecht also advises the Sports Club Council, which has the final say over a sports club’s approval.
“So we have a Sports Club Council made up of officers across all clubs. When a club wants funding, they submit a proposal or request for funds from the Sports Club Council and a group of peers, sit and listen to their presentation and then determine what funding they will have,” Knecht said. “We ask student leaders to be on that council who will be fair and impartial and want to see the success of every club grow, not just their club.”
In total, the UREC has $172,000 in funding per academic year for clubs, with $100,000 being reserved for charter buses. There are three tiers of funding for sports clubs based on the needs for each sport club. For example the table tennis club might not need to travel and just wants extra money to replace equipment, therefore, they would receive a lower tier of funding. Who gets what funding tier is decided by the council.
The process of becoming a fully-fledged student organization takes work, but any student willing to make the leap will find several avenues to success.
Correction: A previous version of this article erroneously referred to LSU Campus Life as “Office of Student Activities” and misstated Campus Life’s role in recruitment and the number of people necessary to start a student organization. We regret these errors.
