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Advocacy group cut from ASG budget
The Advocate
The MHCC Associated Student Government will end its four-year membership with the Oregon Student Association this July.
Typically, $70,000 is allocated by the Finance Council in the student fee budget to pay OSA their yearly membership fee. This year, the Finance Council approved a budget without any money designated to pay OSA. The ASG Senate later approved this budget, and this finalized budget was forwarded to Vice President for Student Success and Enrollment Management David Minger for endorsement, and ultimately to the MHCC District board for final approval.
OSA is a nonprofit organization, which represents students or student groups when issues arise such as tuition increases, financial aid among others. OSA then lobbies the Oregon Legislature on those matters.
ASG President Larry Collins-Morgan said he feels people may be under the wrong impression about the move.
"This is isn't an MHCC versus the OSA thing. This is a fiscal responsibility thing," said Collins-Morgan. "This is roughly $70,000 a year that we can place into other school projects."
Collins-Morgan said the ASG had been facing growing concerns, from the outside and from within, to cut spending and reduce its budget.
"One thing we (the ASG) have been hearing from students is, 'don't increase our fees.' So instead of raising those, we're doing this," Collins-Morgan said. Not everyone is in favor of the change.
Jordan Bennett, Oregon Student Equal Rights Alliance (a group within OSA) board member, said, "I think it is unfortunate that they (ASG) decided to pull out of OSA with such a strong support on campus."
Bennett referred to support in the form of an unnamed number of student petitions and a Facebook page.
Collins-Morgan said, "We are already members of several organizations similar to the OSA, organizations that advocate for students. This cut is something that will benefit many students and MHCC as a whole."
— Jordan Tichenor also contributed to this story.
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