The Veterans Club received partial funding from the United Student Government (USG) Monday to finance a resumé event to be held this Friday at the JVH Auditorium in Thayer Hall.
The club recently reformed, and it has been progressing since early to mid January. Due to its recent development and the new leaders unaware of the deadline, it missed the due date to properly apply for funding, making it difficult for USG to allocate money for the event. USG is already looking at a smaller budget for the next funding period this spring.
The seminar event will feature members of the local Veterans Affairs (VA) who will come and talk to veterans on how to build their resumés, apply for internships and help with their employment. Career Development is also sending members so the experience can benefit everyone, not just veterans.
Members of USG discussed and debated the topic Monday, weighing the affects of either partially funding, or not financing the club at all. Advisors of the Veterans Club contacted Vice President Andrew LeDonne and Treasurer Thaddeus Covaleski, reaching out to them with information about where they stand as a club.
“They are going to be active regardless. It’s just whether we want or can help them out with it,” Covaleski said during the meeting Monday.
Assistant Coordinator of Student Involvement Ken Middlemiss, from the Office of Student Activities, agrees with Covaleski in aspects of the club’s intentions.
“Just with the spirit that they have, I can tell that it will be spent on something good, and I don’t know if I can say that about every club,” Middlemiss said at the meeting Monday. “I do think its going to a good place.”
Ryan Vickers, who considers himself a club advisor for the group, has been in contact and is working to do what he can to keep the club active. One of his goals is to get the membership of the club up and more operational.
“The Veterans Club focuses on veterans in the community and at the school and tries to take their capabilities and knowledge of the military to apply it to career opportunities here at home,” Vickers said in a phone interview Monday.
He also stated that he wants to be able to interact with the community and the University itself because he sees it housing a lot of untraditional students and veterans.
Middlemiss asked for members not to penalize Vickers in a time aspect because he recently became in charge and work to turn the club around.
“I think giving them a little bit of money wouldn’t be the worst idea because at least this way, if they do get a little bit of funding, they can go to different organizations like Career Development and say, ‘Hey, we got a little bit of money started right now, and if you could pitch an extra bit of money we can get this going,’” Middlemiss said.
Middlemiss also voiced that he would rather see a new club receive money and get started rather than divvy it out to current clubs instead.
Of the $250 the club asked for, USG allocated $100 of it in hopes that other clubs or specific people will also help to contribute.
“Right now we have limited resources and membership issues,” Vickers said. “We really want to try and roll this into a continual thing, so I am really hoping this Friday goes well.”
