The difference between last year’s SOFC budgets and this year’s shocked many e-boards and students. While some budgets had only a ten-dollar cut, some reached hundreds of dollars. Others were cut by thousands. No matter the number, the budget cuts were noticeable. This difference has affected many orgs on campus and has prompted members to consider how to use their limited resources.
Notably, what seems like budget cuts this year is really a reversion to budgets allotted prior to COVID. After speaking to some members of SOFC, I was informed that the budgets orgs have been receiving for roughly the past four years have been an augmentation of previous budgets. In other words, the shock of these budget cuts is so astounding because upperclassmen, namely those who have only really known a world of ample budgets, are unfamiliar with such modest funds. Allegedly, this increase in funding during and after COVID was an incentive to increase student body morale and participation in community events.
This year’s budget cuts have affected food spending allotments in particular. Food spending for all orgs is determined by calculating 30% of the total amount allotted for event spending. In addition, food budgets and event budgets are not interchangeable, and this calculation means that event budgets far surpass food funding. While this may just be an issue orgs will have to come to terms with, this change seems to disproportionately impact cultural orgs.
As someone in a cultural org, it is safe to say that a major component of every single one of our events is food. Food not only serves as a major motivator for students to attend events, but it itself plays a key role in sharing and displaying the culture that serves as the foundation of these orgs. In this way, cultural orgs contrast with other orgs, like academic ones, emphasize networking or lecture-based events and are less reliant on general attendance in order to fulfill their purpose. Money to pay speakers is likely more important to them, as the lecture and spoken content are the focal points, not the snack incentive mentioned in the corner of spam.
Additionally, cultural orgs act as centers of community and as a bridge between students and the gaps they may feel toward their cultural backgrounds. As a student who gravitated towards my cultural org as a way of rediscovering my identity and finding community with those who share and take pride in my culture, these cuts are more than just a number. These cuts, especially to food budgets, alter the integrity of our events and our ability to share them with others on campus. In my org, these funding modifications have already begun to impact our event plans, even leading us to consider cancelling one of our most important events. Insufficient food funding, can cause these events to cease to hold the same level of importance and meaning they should, and there is a very real threat.
While these budget cuts may not seem that impactful, it’s important to consider how they impact cultural orgs. Admittedly, I’m not well-versed in the way that budgets are allocated, but I believe that SOFC’s budget allocation process should take into account serious considerations about the needs of each type of org.
One possibility could be reallocating funds set aside for events planning to money for food. Oftentimes, we have leftover money from the money specifically set aside for event planning but rarely do with food funding. The issue at hand seems not to be one of existing available funding. It appears to be more of ill-fitted budgets. Another solution may be to allow orgs to decide how to manage a total sum of both event and food money, instead of having strict rules around what may be used for what purchases.
What may seem like silly or repetitive complaints about the bureaucracy of Wellesley College often have deeper implications than we may think. Beyond superficial whining about not having enough money lies the deeper, significant knowledge that seemingly trivial things like food serve rich purposes in cultural pride. Finances underlie community and culture. Budgets are gateways to heritage and history. When we forget this, we weaken our cultural communities on campus.
Contact the editors responsible for this story: Caitlin Donovan, Avery Finley
