In the first meeting of winter quarter, the Associated Students Finance Board distributed $10,806 to two student organizations.

The board fully funded requests by Project Eye to Eye and Laughology during last night’s brief 40-minute meeting. Currently, the board has $285,497.60 left in this year’s budget.

Project Eye to Eye received $6,806 to fund an art exhibit, parent conference and guest speaker. Coordinator Melinda Hofmann, a fourth-year biology major, said the organization consists of UCSB students with various learning disabilities.

“We mentor kids at the local elementary school that have our same learning disabilities,” Hofmann said. “We try to make an impact [on the kids] by creating a connection. The first university students that they get to know are just like them.”

Hofmann said the project is trying to break the stigma of having a disability by inviting motivational speaker David Flint who has prospered despite his learning disabilities.

“[Flint] graduated from Brown University,” Hofmann said. “He got a Master’s [degree]. He was one of the original mentors — the project started at Brown University. He is dyslexic and has ADD. … We want parents to think, ‘My kid is just like him so he can make it just like him.'”

Board member Tina Samson said the organization should receive full funding even though it has not sought financial support from other organizations.

“They mentioned they weren’t asking other sources funding for this [event],” Samson said. “But they already ask other groups for money for the arts and crafts they do weekly with the elementary school children.”

Laughology – UCSB’s weekly stand-up comedy show – was the other organization that requested money from Finance Board.

President Jeffrey Urrea, a fifth-year film & media studies major, said the comedy group has cut their budget, but prefers not to charge admission for fear of “complicating matters.”

“We understand there’s a strict budget,” Urrea said. “We’ve done everything to reduce the budget as much as possible, even eliminating all advertisement costs.”

The organization received $4,000 to fund all shows for Winter Quarter.

Meanwhile, Finance Board personnel will be facing a shake up this quarter following the resignation of Sarah Dasko as Chair. Vice Chair Dan Plotkin said Dasko resigned for “personal reasons” and the board will be conducting an open search to fill the position. However, he said interested students must have prior Finance Board experience to apply for the job.