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The Student Life program shall seek to complement the academic programs and services by providing opportunities and experiences that further enhance the student’s overall development. The program shall provide opportunities for individuals to become involved participants or observers in co-curricular programs and services that are geared to the student’s educational, occupational, social, cultural, and recreational interests. The program shall reflect equitable opportunities for both men and women, and provide opportunities for all students.
The Rochester Community and Technical College Student Life Program shall operate under Parts 1, 2 and 5 of Minnesota State Board Policy on Student Life. (Minnesota State Board Policy 2.8 states that consolidated colleges may choose to operate under the community college and/or technical college programming models. Rochester Community and Technical College will operate under Part 5, the technical college programming model.)
Part 1. Dedicated Student Life Activity Fee:
Subpart A. Rochester Community and Technical College shall have a dedicated student life activity fee that stays local.
Subpart B. Each spring the Student Senate shall propose a student life activity fee to the College President. The President shall approve or reject the fee, and authorize the collection of the student life activity fee. If an agreement cannot be reached, the student life activity fee from the previous year will remain in place.
Subpart C. The Student Life Fee shall be identified separately on the student’s fee statement.
Subpart D. Upon the recommendation of the Student Senate, the College President may exempt specific groups of students from all or a percentage of the student life activity fee when this action is judged to be in the best interests of the college.
Part 2. Fiscal Guidelines for Student Life Activity Budget:
Subpart A. Each spring the Student Senate shall propose a Student Life Budget that shall be divided into six sections: Operations, Activities, Programs, Student Senate, Fine Arts, and Varsity Athletics. The Student Life Finance Committee shall annually recommend to the Student Senate the amount of the fee in the ensuing year, the allocation of revenues, policies and procedures for oversight of the student life/activities budget, and expenditures consistent with system and institution policies and procedures
Subpart B. The composition of the Student Life Finance Committee shall consist of the Student Treasurer as chair and a non-voting member, Student President, Vice President, four (4) Senators, the Office of Student Life, and the Business Office. Only student members of the committee shall have voting power. The Student Life Finance Committee shall: (1) approve all expenditures from the Student Life Fund Balance, (2) develop a Student Life budget, including a Student Life fee recommendation for the following year, and to appropriate funding to the Student Life cost centers to be presented to the Student Senate, and sent to the RCTC President for final approval, and (3) in the event that enrollment or revenue projections are not met, the Student Life Budget shall be adjusted by the Student Life Finance Committee. Adjustment recommendations must be approved by the College President and the Student Senate
Subpart C. The Student Senate shall approve the budget and submit it to the College President. The College President shall approve or reject the budget, or portions of it. If an agreement cannot be reached, the budget, or the portions that agreement cannot be reached upon, from the previous year will remain in place.
Subpart D. The Student Life Coordinator shall administer the approved budget.
Subpart E. In the event that enrollment projections are not met, the Student Life Budget shall be adjusted by the Student Life Coordinator with majority approval of the Senate membership. The Senate shall submit recommended Student Life Budget changes to the College President for final approval.
Subpart F. Student Life cost center fund balances shall not have carry-over authority into the next fiscal year. All budgeted funds not spent by the stated end-of-fiscal-year deadline shall be returned to Student Life. Additional funds raised by individual groups, shall remain in the group’s student life ‘fundraising/revenue’ account.
Date of Implementation: Immediate
Date of Adoption: May 10, 2018
Revisions: 6/18/2020