The Associated Students Finance Board reopened its checkbook at its first meeting of Winter Quarter Monday night in the UCen – but then decided to close it back up.

Board members listened to one group’s request for funding, but gave no money to the club. Jennifer Benda, president of the Office of Student Life (OSL) Student Leadership Club, presented the budget for OSL’s annual Student Leadership Conference. She requested the board match the $1,300 donation it gave last year. Board member Kristin Ditlevsen said she was in support of Benda’s attempts to raise money but felt the leadership club should look to OSL’s resources first.

“[The OSL student fee] is specifically earmarked for leadership programs,” Ditlevsen said. “A.S. would love to contribute and we do in a number of ways, but we have a very limited amount of money to allocate to students.”

Several board members opposed giving money to the conference, as they said OSL now has its own lock-in fee designated for financing leadership programs. Finance Board Chair Fernando Ramirez said the $1.75 lock-in fee passed last spring is designated for alternative social programming, first-year experience programming and leadership programming.

“There are supposed to be allocations for student leadership [from the OSL fee],” he said. “I don’t see a more perfect match then this event and that money.”

Carolyn Buford, UCSB associate dean of students, said the majority of the conference’s expenses will be covered by the OSL lock-in fee. Currently the fee covers OSL awards, grants for student-organized alternative social programming, and paid student internships within OSL. She said she was not surprised Finance Board did not give the club any money.

“I can understand why A.S. would want the fee to cover this conference completely,” Buford said. “They’re probably doing what we are – trying to spread their resources.”

The eighth annual Leadership Conference is free and open to all UCSB students, and will be held the evening of Jan. 22. It will include workshops focusing on organizational development and community building, a talk from keynote speaker Dr. John Hernandez and refreshments before and after the event.

With the Student Leadership Club receiving no money, Ramirez said the board has $19,340.37 for Winter Quarter, some of which is left over from last quarter’s unallocated funds.