Four students were elected to the Students? Association Appropriations Committee Tuesday. Freshman Carolyn Kaminski and sophomores Kelly Seaman, Cara Saunders and Samantha Helmig are the newest SAAC controllers after being elected by the existing controllers.
The four new controllers were elected from a field of six candidates. The elections were open to all UR students.
Looking aheadHelmig looked forward to her new position. ?I hope to learn the ins and outs of the committee and to be comfortable with all of my responsibilities,? she said. ?I look forward to serving with the people who elected me.?
Seaman also recognized the responsibility that comes with the job. ?I definitely think that if I can be myself and if I?m objective and fair then together we can make the right decisions,? she said. ?I?m going to be very open-minded and consider everyone the same way.?
ResponsibilitiesSAAC is comprised of nine controllers and five SA senators. Controllers are elected each fall when there are openings in the committee. Each controller stays on the committee as long as he or she is a UR student on campus.
Each controller is assigned to a set of SA funded groups who they work with and help manage finances.
The senate must now confirm the four newly elected controllers. Senior and SA Treasurer Malik Evans said he expected them to be confirmed easily, since there are five senators on SAAC.
FiguresSAAC is responsible for appropriating over $650,000 in Student Activities fees. Each student pays a mandatory annual fee of $175, and the committee proposes a budget each spring. ?Being responsible for over half a million dollars is a gigantic task,? Evans said.
In the meantime, SAAC works with SA groups. ?We make sure that the student activities fee is spent wisely and [have] to be responsive to the students? needs,? Evans said.
Bock can be reached at dbock@campustimes.org.