Budget breakdown

With nine independent committees, Frosh Week 2011 will cost an estimated $600,000

Image supplied by: Graphic by Janghan Hong

Over $500 of shaving cream is just one of the interesting line items found on a Frosh Week budget.

“In the past we’ve bought out some stores,” Head Gael David Coulson said, adding that it’s used during Frosh Olympics which includes events like human curling.

As the largest faculty, Arts and Science Frosh Week is projected to cost over $250,000 this year, serving approximately 2,000 incoming students.

“We usually have are really good participation rate,” Coulson said.

With a total projected budget nearing $600,000, Frosh Week 2011 encompasses seven faculty orientations as well as those for New, Exchange, Woohoo, Transfer Students (NEWTS) and First Years Not In Residence Students (FYNIRS).

Along with Arts and Science, Commerce and Engineering Frosh Weeks run tabs of $140,000 and $100,000 respectively.

A major cost unique to Engineering is the Grease Pole, an event that doesn’t come cheap at $37,000.

Incoming first-year engineers work as a group to seize a tam on top of the famous pole in a showing of teamwork and endurance.

“The large majority of this expense is for the various precautions [like] Student Constables, Queen’s First Aid [and]Campus Security that are in place to ensure the safety of everyone involved,” EngSoc Vice-President of Operations ClaireWunker told the Journal via email.

EngSoc expects about 650 frosh this year who will each pay $130 to participate in the week. Frosh fees are the main source of funding for all orientation committees. Fees vary between $50 to participate in FYNIRS and $210 for Commerce.

Frosh Week committees reach out to sponsors to supplement funding from frosh fees.

Sponsorship has allowed the Computing Student Association (COMPSA) to revive its Frosh Week which was previously on probation, until 2010. Reasoning for the decision included organizational problems and poor leadership, said head organizer Greg Allan. In recent years, COMPSA has been the only orientation committee to run a significant deficit.

The organized week, for an average of 70 students, made a comeback complete with corporate sponsorship.

“COMPSA had a bit of a rough streak,” Allan said. “We’ve managed to secure sponsorship from Microsoft two years in a row now: $2,000 last year and $1,000 this year.”

COMPSA has a projected budget of $7,400 with frosh fees for the week set at $90.

All orientation week committees manage their own budgets independently with the common goal to break even.

“The goal with orientation week is to spend all the money that you collect because people are spending … money for this week,” said Orientation Round Table Coordinator Rachel Shindman.

Accountability comes from the overarching faculty society.

“The committees for the week don’t get the money until the participants register,” Shindman said, adding that any money collected for orientation ideally goes back to the frosh. “That’s one of the reasons the Orientation Round Table (ORT) is here.”

ORT pays for major costs that apply to each faculty including t-shirts.

“[Recoverable expenses] includes things the AMS fronts the money for on behalf of the committee and gets reimbursed for.”

Other common expenses organized by ORT include the annual frosh concert, which is open to all Frosh Week groups. ORT organizes sponsorship as well, independently from faculty societies.

Tags

Budget, Finance, Frosh Week, Special Project

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