The ASUO, during their Sept. 28 meeting, approved a special request for funding allotment to the Organization Against Sexual Assault. The reason for the request was to implement positions that have historically been a part of the organization and are for student aid. These positions were cut by the Program Finance Committee last year because the committee deemed the extra money not necessary for the group.
The student run organization was designed to advocate for and help survivors of sexual violence. The organization began operation in 2012 as the Violence Prevention Task Force created to monitor current education, prevention and support services at UO.
At the time, ASUO President Quinn Haaga was a member of the Program Finance Committee and authorized the budget cut.
“One of the reasons their budget did see such a large decrease,” Haaga said, “is because … their budget actually wasn’t following the stipend model that the ASUO enforces. So, in order to receive that stipend, their stipend model was decreased.”
Currently, OASA can only afford three positions for its organization. These positions include the human resource director, logistics coordinator and the public relations director.
The OASA budget was originally cut $1,800 but was recently restored after their petition was approved by ASUO. This money was moved from ASUO surplus to the OASA stipend.
Zach Lusby, internal vice president of ASUO, was also a member of the PFC at the same time as Haaga. According to Lusby, the PFC follows a strict set of standards that determine which groups can receive funding and which ones will not.
“It can be kind of harsh when it comes budget fees and which groups get a funding increase or which groups get a funding decrease,” Lusby said. “The program finance committee agreed that they [OASA] didn’t actually need all the money that was originally allocated to them.”
According to the OASA request for increased funding to the ASUO, “Due to budget cuts last year, OASA was forced to downsize and remove vital positions needed to maintain and create projects.”
The money that OASA requested will be used to add two Members-at-Large positions which will provide increased organizational support for projects.
With OASA’s new total stipend amount increasing to $7,200 from $5,400, the organization hopes to increase awareness and provide support to the student body. The organization has ongoing projects that they put on which are coordinated by an eight person staff. With this increase in funding, the group plans to hire more positions to better handle the demand for these events.
“I think that their community aspect was an important part of their group,” Lusby said. “They just needed a budget that was more attuned to what their group functions were.”
This was a reason ASUO decided to increase the funding for OASA — so that they can better handle their ongoing projects and aid the student body.
The Emerald contacted OASA for comment, but as of this publication, no members have responded to our request.
Published in The Daily Emerald
Miguel SR Photography 