Members discussed redefining the purpose of the Student Union Board's "carry forward" fund during the Council of Representatives (COR) meeting in Lafortune Tuesday evening.
The fund, which has served as a reservoir for all unused funding from Student Government, Judicial Council, Hall President's Council and Student Union Board (SUB), has accumulated well over $100,000.
SUB manager Patrick Vassel said it's "a large amount of money that seems that it's not being put to the best use."
Money from the fund has not been drawn from any student organizations, student body president Lizzi Shappell said.
"I can't recall anyone ever asking for money out of [the carry forward fund]," Shappell said.
There was a general consensus in putting the money in the carry forward fund toward an endowment, using the interest from it each year toward SUB functions. According to a summary of Student Union Programming distributed before the meeting, "Major speakers, national and international leaders, personalities, and the types of speakers that Notre Dame should attract to campus are normally above the total allocation for all speakers. Likewise, major performers cost at least $100,000 for talent alone. Obviously, this is an area of student life that is under-funded."
Breen-Phillips senator Maris Braun noted that SUB could invite bigger bands to concerts and improve overall student life at Notre Dame if it had the money.
"I don't think it comes down to the fact that SUB can't do it," Braun said. "I think it's just that we don't have the money."
Vassel said the speaker series and concert series that exist at other universities would be a great asset to Notre Dame, but "dollar signs were just flying through my head as I was sitting in the Joyce Center because those things aren't cheap," he said.
Discussion on endowment possibilities was tabled until more specific information could be obtained about money in the fund.
In other COR news:
u Vice president Bill Andrichik reported on the Student Senate opinion about the presidential division of SUB's budget discussed during last Tuesday's COR meeting. Senate members seemed to agree that the division should be put under student government rather than SUB, but wanted to "make sure that the money would still be available and that FMB would consider it a separate entity." As for moving SUB's oversight level from $5,000 to $10,000, Andrichik said members thought it "contentious."
u Judicial Council President Liz Kozlow announced that the presidential debates will take place Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. in the main lounge of Lafortune. Voting day is Monday.
