In the wake of a significant funding increase, Princeton’s Undergraduate Student Government (USG) discussed an expansion of the scope of the USG Projects Board in a meeting on Sunday, Oct. 8. The expansion was approved unanimously by the group, though it received questions from the sisters Isabella Shutt ’24 and Genevieve Shutt ’26 for not going far enough.
The Projects Board is the primary way that clubs can get funding through the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students (ODUS). Other funding sources include academic departments and other administrative bodies for different types of clubs, for example, the Pace Center for service clubs. The Project Board typically only funds events that are open to the whole student body, not internal club events or initiatives.
The Projects Board benefits from increased funding for USG after an activity fee increase starting this fall. USG President Stephen Daniels ’24 and Class of 2025 Senator Braiden Aaronson ’25 presented an amendment to allow funding for club sports or student travel opportunities in the future. “If club baseball or softball was to put on a watch party that’s open to the student body, that’s something that we fund for other clubs currently,” Daniels said. Currently, all costs associated with club sports groups are required to go through Campus Rec to receive funding.
The proposed amendment would also cover “transportation to an off-campus event” for clubs according to the charter amendment document. The document also states that the USG will “consider the value the event will provide to the Princeton or visited community,” and ensure the event cannot be replicated on campus. The USG will vote on travel spending to ensure it is appropriate.
Daniels maintained that the changes were also being made because club sports and travel requests were the two most commonly rejected requests from the Projects Board.
The proposal came under sustained questioning from U-Councilors Isabella Shutt and Genevieve Shutt. Isabella Shutt ran against Daniels in the December 2022 USG presidential election.
Isabella Shutt raised the question about whether clubs could get Projects Board funding for equipment. “In the charter, clubs can apply for funding for capital expenditures but that is not communicated to the student body,” Shutt stated. Dean Ian Deas, an ODUS liaison with USG, suggested that such funding was not desirable, because in the past, that property would “end up in people‘s rooms and … [eventually make] their way home over the summer.”
According to Daniels, the USG charter dictates that capital expenditures for clubs are permitted, but any purchases become the sole property of the USG. In an email to the Daily Princetonian, Daniels noted this has been the primary reason why expenditures have not been as prevalent.
Genevieve Shutt argued that service center groups should be included in USG funding. Deas clarified that service center groups registered with the Pace Center, along with groups registered with the Office of Religious Life, are already eligible for Projects Board funding.
Isabella Shutt then suggested that Projects Board should expand further to fund food during travel, but Aaronson argued that costs “balloons very quickly after a certain point” and that it may not be sustainable to fund off campus travel too extensively.
Genevieve and Isabella Shutt both brought up examples of the inability of the Projects Board to fund student community-based interactions, specifically citing activist groups. “SPEAR workshops have been truly student-run, and yet they still have not been eligible for funding,” Genevieve Shutt said. Daniels contested that USG has funded SPEAR in the past.
Genevieve Shutt cited an ESL workshop co-hosted by SPEAR and said that SPEAR had “to go through other funding sources and they didn‘t even come to us.”
According to a member of SPEAR, they have asked USG for funding in the past, but did not ask for Projects Board funding for the workshop. “We hope Projects Board will fund expressly community-based projects in the future,” said Alan Plotz ’25, a SPEAR member.
Isabella Shutt also argued that the Farmers’ Market has to go through Senate approval for funding because it supports the town, and similar groups might feel “uncomfortable” presenting to the Senate. Genevieve Shutt has previously supported the Farmers’ Market in the Senate.
Daniels said that since the Projects Board is funded through student activities fees, it would be “dangerous territory if we go beyond for students by students.” Aaronson said “the working group is still actively meeting and there are many considerations that are still happening. We just figured that [the current amendment] was something that we could do right now”, adding that conversations would continue into the future.
The USG voted unanimously to approve the amendment.
In other news, Daniels announced plans for a large tailgate for the Princeton-Harvard game.
U-Councilor Roberto Lachner ’26 and Genevieve Shutt presented planning for a USG-sponsored Princeton Ghost Tour around the Princeton Cemetery. The trip would cost $1047.50 and allow for 25 students to attend. The expense was approved in a unanimous vote.
The group also conducted confirmations of new members to the Honor Committee. Out of 14 applicants, three first-years were selected: Minh Truong ’27, Sebastien Nordenson ’27, and Song Ting Tang ’27. All three members were approved in a unanimous vote.
The USG meetings are held on Sundays from 5–6 p.m. at Aaron Burr 219 and are open for all students to attend.
Nandini Krishnan is a staff News writer for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
Editors Note: This article has been updated to include details on how the USG charter handles capital expenditures for clubs.
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