2008 Woodie Awards
Campus seeks to improve allocation system
IUPUI activity fees
Tania Banegas
Issue date: 2/27/08 Section: College News
When Trevor Fulk, former president of the Undergraduate Student Government, discovered he was being investigated in a conflict-of-interest case, he was staggered.
"If I would have known about that form, the entire issue goes away," Fulk said, referring to a conflict-of-interest disclosure form he was supposed to submit with his funding proposal.
As president of CrossRoads, a student dance organization, Fulk had requested $1,500 for a dance event. But Fulk was also co-owner of Circle City, LLC, the dance company that would have benefited from the funds.
Fulk said he never tried to hide the fact that he was co-owner of the Circle City, LLC. His name and phone number were on the contact list for the company. And he said he had never heard of the disclosure form.
In January, the USG Executive Board offered Fulk the choice of resigning immediately or having the matter brought the USG Senate.
"I chose to resign because I'm taking 21 credit hours," Fulk said. "Frankly, at that point it was not worth the argument."
A report issued by Indiana University Internal Audit about the case said that no conflict of interest had occurred because the Campus and Community Life staff recognized the potential conflict and did not approve the payment. It also said the CCL staff should educate employees and students on conflicts of interest.
Every semester, student organizations submit funding proposals to pay for their events. If approved, the funds come from the activity fees students pay each semester. But many students - including Fulk, who dealt closely with student fees - say the system is difficult to understand and that they aren't aware of many of the rules.
For the 2007-2008 fiscal year, every student paid $50 to $90, depending on credit hours. The estimated student activity fee income is close to $4 million, of which $100,000 will be distributed to school councils and student organizations. The rest of the money is allocated between 17 departments and programs across campus, including the Campus Center, Campus and Community Life, student transportation.
"If I would have known about that form, the entire issue goes away," Fulk said, referring to a conflict-of-interest disclosure form he was supposed to submit with his funding proposal.
As president of CrossRoads, a student dance organization, Fulk had requested $1,500 for a dance event. But Fulk was also co-owner of Circle City, LLC, the dance company that would have benefited from the funds.
Fulk said he never tried to hide the fact that he was co-owner of the Circle City, LLC. His name and phone number were on the contact list for the company. And he said he had never heard of the disclosure form.
In January, the USG Executive Board offered Fulk the choice of resigning immediately or having the matter brought the USG Senate.
"I chose to resign because I'm taking 21 credit hours," Fulk said. "Frankly, at that point it was not worth the argument."
A report issued by Indiana University Internal Audit about the case said that no conflict of interest had occurred because the Campus and Community Life staff recognized the potential conflict and did not approve the payment. It also said the CCL staff should educate employees and students on conflicts of interest.
Every semester, student organizations submit funding proposals to pay for their events. If approved, the funds come from the activity fees students pay each semester. But many students - including Fulk, who dealt closely with student fees - say the system is difficult to understand and that they aren't aware of many of the rules.
For the 2007-2008 fiscal year, every student paid $50 to $90, depending on credit hours. The estimated student activity fee income is close to $4 million, of which $100,000 will be distributed to school councils and student organizations. The rest of the money is allocated between 17 departments and programs across campus, including the Campus Center, Campus and Community Life, student transportation.
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