“We can’t make the same mistakes next week,” Associated Students Finance Board Chair K.C. Mmeje told his board after Monday’s meeting. “We’ll go broke.”

Finance Board gave out over half its money in the three-hour meeting, leaving just over $16,000 available for the rest of Spring Quarter. The board, which started the meeting with $40,431 to dole out over the quarter, gave money on Monday to 12 different student groups.

Mmeje said he was disappointed in the board for addressing proposals quickly, and singled out the board’s $7,170 allocation to Men Against Rape, the largest grant of the meeting, as too hastily confirmed.

The majority of that money will go to fund a speaker, former Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Don McPherson, who was drafted in 1988 and spent his career as a backup to Randall Cunningham. Men Against Rape Co-Coordinator Jeff Bucholtz, said his group wants to hold a rally, with McPherson as the keynote speaker, to teach people that rape is also a male issue.

“Basically, what we want to do is raise awareness,” he said. “This is an issue that can touch the whole community. … The event needs to happen because men need to know.”

After the meeting, Mmeje and Finance Board Vice Chair Eric Lindquist said the board should not have given so much money to fund a speaker few people had heard of. Yet, he said, last quarter members granted money for a Commission on Disability Access (CODA) plan to bring Christopher Reeve to campus, though the event was ultimately canceled.

Mmeje said the board should not be influenced by the worth of an event, because for the organizers, every event is important.

“I thought we gave out too much money. Way too much money,” Mmeje said. “I didn’t feel like there was enough dialogue when the motions came out. For the amount of money we spent, we didn’t talk enough.”

The board also gave $3,500 each to Indus and the Black Student Union to hold culture weeks. Before the meeting, the board agreed on a $3,500 cap for culture weeks, because several groups hold such annual events during Spring Quarter.

Indus asked for $7,450 to hold its Indian culture week, the first of its kind at UCSB. “This will be the only Indian culture week in the UC system, so it’s important that we get this done,” Indus Financial Chair David Hopkins said.

Hermanos Unidos received $2,119 to hold an outreach event for admitted minority high school students. Jorge Cabrera, a member of the group, told the board that last year, the group bused in 40 students to hold workshops on admissions and financial aid.

Cabrera said one student who did not get into UCSB was so impressed by the presentation that he was convinced to appeal the decision, which he did successfully to gain admission. He said examples like this showcase the event’s worth, and its ability to make high school students feel comfortable at UCSB.

“We try to get admitted students in here to get a feel for the campus before they send in a [Statement of Intent to Register],” Cabrera said.

The board also gave $1,500 to Students Teaching Alcohol and other drug Responsibility (STAR) to hold a safe graduation event, which it has put on annually in front of the UCen. The event showcases a mock car crash with blood splattered around the scene and speakers.

Alpha Kappa Psi got $1,300 from the board to hold a career fair next week, which it said, could draw as many as 60 potential employers for students who do not graduate in the spring.

Four groups received under $1,000, including the Reel Loud Film Festival, which got $200 for its May 25 production in Campbell Hall. Los Curanderos received $750 to hold a conference with speakers from the medical profession, Kappa Alpha Psi received $610 for a campus party to celebrate its 20th anniversary and Alpha Phi Alpha got $600 for its spring dance.

All allocations are pending A.S. Legislative Council approval at its meeting Wednesday night.