Students walking through the campus may notice people passing out buttons, T-shirts, push cards and fliers for the orange-and-white team, but these items are not for a Student Government presidential campaign but for the Union campaign.
Since the beginning of March, the Union has promoted its “A Bigger and Better Union” campaign to get students to vote Wednesday for a fee increase to pay for Union renovations.
But how is the Union able to finance this campaign?
Shirley Plakidas, Union director, said the funds for the promotional supplies are taken from a Union Support Fund set up through the LSU Foundation.
Cecil Phillips, LSU Foundation president, said this fund acts as a checking account for the Union. The support fund is a nonendowed fund that only receives gift money from alumni.
He also said every department has a nonendowed general support fund through the foundation.
Plakidas said the support fund has $5,500 and is used for T-shirts and other promotional materials.
“It enables us to pay for things not covered by state funds,” Plakidas said.
      She said the Union tries to recycle supplies, such as balloons and a button machine.
“We are not aiming to run a glitzy campaign,” Plakidas said. “We are not spending a large amount of money.”
She also said the advertising expenses not taken from the foundation fund are taken from the annual budget for marketing the Union’s services and facilities.
“The Union has conducted campaigns much the same way as in the past,” Plakidas said.
She said the people working on the campaign are the same people who regularly work to promote Union programming.
“This is just an extension of what they are doing,” Plakidas said.
The Union has used $3,267.40 on the referendum campaign.
Plakidas said this money was used to distribute accurate and comprehensive information in the most economical and efficient way.
The Union spent $2,142 on 10 advertisements in The Reveille. In addition, 2,000 note pads cost $515, 24 T-shirts for the committee cost $171 and 30 yard signs cost $115. The other items used in the promotion campaign, such as fliers and posters, cost $324.40.
Plakidas said the total money spent on advertising equals about 1 percent of the Union’s $5 million budget. The campaign is about .00006 of the $54 million renovation project, she said.
She also said the largest investment in the campaign is in the work by students.
“The largest investment is from students who talked and answered questions,” Plakidas said. “It far exceeds anything we have spent in terms of advertising.
Plakidas also said The Reveille is the primary source for advertising for Union programs year-round.
“If no one knows about the programs, then we can’t have these programs,” Plakidas said.