The University Park Student Fee Board convened for its first Monday morning meeting of the session to finalize its plans for Friday’s final fee recommendation vote.

The Board picked up where it left off last Friday, beginning the meeting with a discussion of the Student Programming Association’s (SPA) allocation request.

The discussion focused on SPA’s $30,000 request increase. SPA director of finance and at-large Fee Board member Christine Nyangwenyo explained that the organization planned to bring a notable comedian to Eisenhower Auditorium in place of the Nittany Block Party next fall because of Penn State football’s schedule and increased safety.

“Because of the football weekend, we want to make sure that it’s in a closed and safer environment, so we wanted to bring in a comedian instead,” Nyangwenyo said.

The Board also discussed SPA’s Ed-Ventures program, which provides student transportation and itineraries for day trips to east-coast cities such as New York and Boston.

The Board generally supported SPA’s programming increase, but was hesitant to allocate the $23,000 it requested specifically for the comedian.

It then moved on to a discussion of the LGBTQA Student Resource Center’s programming request — it discussed the center’s facility funding several weeks ago.

The Board focused on the request’s dichotomy between student programming and employment. It worked to clarify the Center’s student employees’ roles and salaries, and discussed the use of internal, general funding for programs such as the Center’s peer education programs and safe sex initiatives in relation to the use of Fee Board Funding.

“A, [student fee board funding] is serving students by keeping the offices staffed, and B, it’s doing that in a way that also employs those students in that space,” Graduate and Professional Student Association representative Nick Dietrich said. “But I’m also sympathetic to the administrative difficulties of taking on student employees to the Fee Board budget.”

The Board also expressed reluctance about allocating funding for the Center’s marketing materials and programs such as social media management. It was supportive of the Center’s clothing transit program, and examined each of its allotments for programming for recognition events such as Transgender Awareness Month and National Coming Out Day as well as graduate student outreach. The Board said it would return to the Center’s request after acquiring further information.

Members then moved to brief discussions of proposals from Campus Recreation and the Student Orientation and Transition Program.
It addressed increased organizational insurance, paid community and faculty gym memberships, and the SOTP’s fall programming schedule.

Following SOTP was a somewhat philosophical examination of the Bryce Jordan Center’s request for increased funding. Board members discussed the relativity of the BJC’s ticket subsidies, noting that, depending on the performer, some subsidies are more effective than others in making tickets more affordable for students.

GPSA President Brianne Pragg questioned the organization’s use of these subsidies, suggesting that the Fee Board note that the BJC is, after all, a business.

“They have an incentive to make tickets at least somewhat affordable for students to go, because if nobody’s going, they’re not making any money,” Pragg said.

“We need to ensure that they are responsible stewards of the money we’re giving them,” said UPUA President Cody Heaton.

The discussion was inconclusive and the Board resolved to revisit the proposal later in the week.

The Fee Board will reconvene Wednesday morning to continue its deliberation process.