The Associated Students Finance Board dispensed $19,257.57 to nine student organizations from its unallocated Fall budget at last night’s meeting.

The board voted to fully fund UCSB Russian Club and Alpha Delta Chi while partially funding the American Indian Intern Association, American Red Cross, Born Again Ministries, India Association, A.S. S.C.O.R.E., Lambda Chi Alpha and A.S. Legislative Council.

During last night’s two-and-a-half hour meeting, the board heard a request to fund a special project from Legislative Council. Off-Campus Rep Elizabeth Farrington presented the council’s proposal to make T-shirts to encourage saving the Education and Sports Sciences Dept. from termination.

“We are trying to save ESS, and we are looking for funding,” Farrington, a third-year chemistry major and ESS minor said. “We got our budget last night and we are going to have an ‘exercise-a-thon’. The Academic Senate is voting to cut all those sports, ES classes, and we are going to have booths of sports, to swim or play basketball and bring out a skeleton and show them what they would miss out on [with] everything that gets cut. We want to teach [students] what they could be missing if [the Academic Senate] votes to close the department.”

Also, the meeting clarified that the Academic Senate has voted to cancel the minor in Education and Sports Sciences, but not to close the department. That vote is still on the agenda, according to Farrington.

When the board broke into allocations on the matter, many members voiced strong concern about losing a UCSB department that has such a widespread effect on the student body.

“I think that we should fund this because it is important,” board member Alexandra Onodera said. “I think that students can change things all the time and at the last minute because it comes down to the chancellor.”

This sentiment was echoed by fellow board member Bennett Duval, who touched on the breadth of the ESS Dept.
 
“I think that we should try to make this a bigger deal,” Duval said. “There are 7,000 people [in lecture classes] and 12,000 in sports classes.”

In the end the board voted to allocate Legislative Council $3,900 to make T-shirts for an ‘exercise-a-thon’ to save the ESS Dept. at the Recreation Center on Nov. 20 from 12 to 3 p.m.

Later, the board heard a request from the American Indian Intern Association for their 34th Annual Harvest Dinner, a potluck event offering food and traditional entertainment.

“We have talked about other events being all about the food, because it is a banquet,” board member Paige Blatt said. “This is like Thanksgiving dinner. This event is just getting bigger and better every year and if we have been a part of it in the past then we should continue to be a part of it.”

The board dispersed $4,416 to the American Indian Intern Association to fund their event.