Somali Student Association application - Student Services Fees
Somali Student Association application - Student Services Fees
Somali Student Association application - Student Services Fees
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2013-2014 <strong>Student</strong> Organization <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Services</strong> <strong>Fees</strong> Request<br />
University of Minnesota – Twin Cities<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong><br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong><br />
January 25, 13<br />
<strong>Fees</strong> Request for 2013 - 2014 Academic Year<br />
Address<br />
Coffman Union 300 Washington Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455<br />
651-434-5850 ssa@umn.edu<br />
Phone Fax Email<br />
“We acknowledge that the <strong>Fees</strong> Committee does not award actual dollars, but rather a penny fee that<br />
earns dollars based upon student enrollment levels. Any differences between anticipated and actual<br />
income resulting from changes in enrollment are the responsibility of the student organization, not of<br />
the <strong>Fees</strong> Committee.”<br />
Amina Ilmi<br />
Preparer’s Name<br />
Ilmix001@umn.edu<br />
Preparer’s Email<br />
Sara Mohammed Nur<br />
Co-Preparer’s Name<br />
moham387@umn.edu<br />
Co-Preparer’s Email<br />
Is your organization an IRS 501 (c)(3) not-for-profit? Yes No X<br />
If yes, please provide proof of your organization’s 501(c)(3) status.<br />
Funds are being requested for (check all that apply):<br />
General Operating Support: X Start-Up Costs: X Capital: X<br />
Project / Program Support: X Technical Assistance: X Other (List):<br />
Budget<br />
Dollar Amount Requested $ 38,590.00<br />
Total Annual Organization Budget $ 51,330.00<br />
Total Program Budget (apart from General Operating) $ 46,470.00<br />
Page 1 of 8
2013-2014 <strong>Student</strong> Organization <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Services</strong> <strong>Fees</strong> Request<br />
University of Minnesota – Twin Cities<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong><br />
Section 1: Narrative<br />
Background and History<br />
The <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> was formed in response to the strong demographic change in the Twin<br />
Cities metropolitan area due to a large population of <strong>Somali</strong> immigrants. This is due to the collapse of<br />
<strong>Somali</strong>a's government and the continuous conflict that is still happening. Since the 1990s, many <strong>Somali</strong>s<br />
have resettled in Minnesota in hopes of finding a place to call home. <strong>Somali</strong>s in Minnesota are<br />
estimated to be around 100, 000. With the growth of the <strong>Somali</strong> Community in Minnesota, young<br />
people started striving for higher education. Thus, with the increase of <strong>Somali</strong> University of Minnesota<br />
student, the founders of SSA saw a need to build a support group for students. With the need of such<br />
support and growth of <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>s at the University of MN-Twin Cities, there was a clear need to<br />
create the <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> in order to not only meet student needs, but also to build a bridge<br />
between the University of Minnesota and its neighbors of the west bank, which are predominantly<br />
<strong>Somali</strong>.<br />
The <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> was established in the summer of 1998 by a group of motivated young<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> students who saw the need and wanted to create an organization that can serve the need of<br />
such students. The main goal that led to the creation of this organization was to make the University of<br />
Minnesota a more welcoming place for <strong>Somali</strong> students. The earlier founders of SSA saw the need to<br />
have more diversity on campus, and a need for such organizations like that of SSA. The association itself<br />
began to create an intellectual bond between <strong>Somali</strong> students and the University in order to improve<br />
both the academic and social atmosphere for <strong>Somali</strong> students. The activities and services of this<br />
organization are testimonial to its commitment to work for a more tolerance environment for <strong>Somali</strong><br />
<strong>Student</strong>s.<br />
Now thirteen years later the <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> has grown in size this being evident of the two<br />
spaces SSA was were granted, one in Saint Paul Campus, and here in Coffman Memorial Union.<br />
Correspondingly, its sharpened vision and roles in both the University and that of the <strong>Somali</strong><br />
community. Furthermore, SSA has become a face for the University of Minnesota to the <strong>Somali</strong><br />
Community, especially with the enormous number of <strong>Somali</strong> people in Cedar Riverside, adjacent to the<br />
West bank of Campus. The <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> here at the University of Minnesota serves as a<br />
main contact to connect none <strong>Somali</strong>s and <strong>Somali</strong>’s across the world who are interested in gaining more<br />
knowledge about <strong>Somali</strong> people in the West, according to the recent census, about 40% of <strong>Somali</strong><br />
people in the U.S live in the Twin cities and it’s surroundings. SSA here at the U of M being the largest<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> Organization in all of North America it is valued as an excellent resource. For example,<br />
BBC in collaboration with MPR on a “Africa have your say” special presentation where the topic is<br />
around the 20th anniversary of the start of the civil war in <strong>Somali</strong>a, they invited the <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong><br />
<strong>Association</strong> to participate in the BBC-MPR live broadcast. This is an example of one of many news<br />
outlets who are interested in having college students be part of their events/and conversations, and see<br />
the U of M’s SSA as the primary contacts. Here on Campus, The <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> strives to<br />
present <strong>Somali</strong> culture to University of Minnesota - Twin Cities <strong>Somali</strong> and Non-<strong>Somali</strong> students through<br />
music, food, workshops, film, poetry, awareness and speakers with the goal of celebrating diversity<br />
among different cultures.<br />
Page 2 of 8
2013-2014 <strong>Student</strong> Organization <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Services</strong> <strong>Fees</strong> Request<br />
University of Minnesota – Twin Cities<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong><br />
Mission<br />
As students of an accredited institution and members of the <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong>, SSA, we shall<br />
strive to promote (A) higher education, (B) cultural awareness at our institution and the community, and<br />
(C) be a support group for students...we are a nonprofit and nonpolitical organization established in<br />
1998.”<br />
Vision<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> vision is to see more successful <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>s at the University as well as<br />
more <strong>Somali</strong> graduates. The primary goal being to see more <strong>Somali</strong> students attend the U of M and a<br />
major secondary goal of facilitating and aiding those students at the U all the way to graduation. A longterm<br />
goal of SSA is to connect and bridge the gap between the U and the large <strong>Somali</strong> Community that’s<br />
around it.<br />
Relationships with Organizations of Like Mission<br />
The <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> recognizes the importance of cooperation with the larger student group<br />
community, and we have endeavored to promote it as one of the pillars of this organization. SSA prides<br />
itself with its collaboration with diverse groups. To name a few that SSA co-sponsored or is involved in<br />
this year, such as that of, as an "Autism in the <strong>Somali</strong> Community: Perspectives on Disability and<br />
Culture." Event where SSA co-sponsored with Disabled <strong>Student</strong> Cultural Center and assistance from, the<br />
Institute for Equity, Diversity, and Advocacy (IDEA) of the Office for Equity and Diversity (OED), also<br />
working closely in the community to help make difference in the lives of gifted children by tutoring at<br />
thriving and unfortunately under resourced centers like that of the <strong>Somali</strong> Education Center with<br />
BGAPSA from the University of Minnesota, and that of “Cultural Celebration” which was a one-day event<br />
intended to promote cross-cultural understanding and international awareness amongst the diverse<br />
University campus. Such, organizations aside from SSA co-sponsored this event, in collaboration with<br />
Sigma Lambda Beta International Fraternity Incorporated, Philippine <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong>, Middle<br />
Eastern <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong>, Oromo <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong>, Cambodian <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> of Minnesota<br />
and Hmong Minnesota <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong>. Also, another 8 student organizations will take part of this<br />
wonderful cultural celebration.<br />
Furthermore, The <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> possesses both an Islamic and African cultural heritage,<br />
and this combination has certainly worked to our benefit. We have developed a relationship with<br />
organizations that share this commonality. Malaysian <strong>Student</strong>s <strong>Association</strong> (PERSISMA), Pakistani<br />
<strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> (PSA), Minnesota International <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> (MISA), Black <strong>Student</strong> Union<br />
(BSU), The Al Madinah Cultural Center Oromia <strong>Student</strong> Union (OSU), Muslim <strong>Student</strong>s’ <strong>Association</strong>,<br />
Circle Of Giving (COG), and Bridge to Academic Excellence <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> (BAESA). We annually<br />
hold and contribute to a plethora of events in conjunction with these groups. The events we collaborate<br />
range from educational workshops to cultural exchange programs. As result of the relationship we have<br />
developed with such organizations, SSA will continue to pursue worthwhile collaborations and further<br />
strengthen our ties with organizations of like mission.<br />
Page 3 of 8
2013-2014 <strong>Student</strong> Organization <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Services</strong> <strong>Fees</strong> Request<br />
University of Minnesota – Twin Cities<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong><br />
Need for the <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong><br />
The University of Minnesota campus is often praised for its geographic location. Generally, the praise is<br />
attributed to how the architecture seamlessly blends in with its metropolitan surroundings. This fact<br />
could not be more evident than in the fraction of the University of Minnesota campus known as the<br />
West Bank. The West Bank borders a residential community. This community’s constituents consist<br />
mostly of migrants who are ethnically <strong>Somali</strong>. In recent years, certain events have transpired in this<br />
community that has affected the university’s larger <strong>Somali</strong> minority. To that end, the availability and<br />
presence of the <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> is crucial and cannot be understated.<br />
<strong>Student</strong>s of <strong>Somali</strong> descent have been applying and arriving at this institution’s door in large numbers<br />
over the last decade. Our general body membership has significantly increased each of the last 3 years.<br />
The <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> endeavors to cater to the needs of its members. For them, we provide a<br />
familiar base in which they can comfortably assimilate with the larger student body. SSA provides these<br />
students with a voice and the necessary tools to positively contribute to this institution. Furthermore,<br />
SSA served as a bridge between that community and larger U-of-M community.<br />
Detail the student benefit derived from your organization, whether or not students utilize services.<br />
All students regardless whether or not they are members of <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> or not may<br />
benefit the services and activities <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> conducts. SSA’s aim is to bring together<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>s and non-<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> to share and exchange cultures. Many students who have had<br />
little knowledge or interactions with <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>s have benefited our efforts of bringing student<br />
together to celebrate cultural tolerance. We have successfully implemented methods of creating<br />
collaborations with other University student services departments where student can take advantage of<br />
services available to them. We are working closely with MCAE to implement ways to better assist<br />
student of Multicultural backgrounds via academics or social events. One of our major goals is to give<br />
students and scholars a venue to interact with one another and we serve as hub that matches new<br />
students with upper class-men and other educators who can help them succeed the University of<br />
Minnesota’s rigorous academics. Such are the services students receive by taking part in our mentorship<br />
program and academic workshops as well as our numerous social events. To accommodate student<br />
needs, SSA’s office in the St. Paul Campus is open from 8am to 8pm, where student come to socialize<br />
with other students, use the space as study area and sometimes take a rest. Our office is filled with<br />
students at all times, and because of it, our Board holds minimum 40 hours of Office Hours to meet the<br />
needs of students.<br />
Describe student involvement within your organization<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> is student run organization where elected board members and appointed<br />
committee members work together to achieve the organizations goals. In addition, SSA is open to<br />
student involvement where we promote, actively to have students get involve with our organizations as<br />
well as our partner organizations. SSA has very enthusiastic volunteer base that help our events, and<br />
services. SSA involvement is not limited nor required to just our membership base. We strive to recruits<br />
best of best future student leaders to come and participate our organization and its mission of<br />
strengthening the University of Minnesota’s diversity.<br />
Page 4 of 8
2013-2014 <strong>Student</strong> Organization <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Services</strong> <strong>Fees</strong> Request<br />
University of Minnesota – Twin Cities<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong><br />
Section 2: Organizational Chart<br />
Page 5 of 8
2013-2014 <strong>Student</strong> Organization <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Services</strong> <strong>Fees</strong> Request<br />
University of Minnesota – Twin Cities<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong><br />
Section 3: Performance Report<br />
Events 2011-2012 2012-2013<br />
2012-2013<br />
Actual<br />
Estimated<br />
Actual<br />
1 MCAE Recruiting Table - 35 100<br />
2 Fall Welcome Event 150 60 135<br />
3 Healthy Breakfasts 550 500 600 (Thus Far)<br />
4 Goldy’s Eid Celebration 155 150 175<br />
5 <strong>Somali</strong> Culture Day (Spring) 330 350 -<br />
6 Freshmen Engagement 106 95 125<br />
7 Come Bowl With Us (Spring) 210 200 -<br />
8 SSA Soccer Cup (Spring) 230 200 -<br />
9 Volunteers Appreciation 75 100 -<br />
Night (Spring)<br />
10 Spring Farewell Dinner 120 100 -<br />
11 <strong>Somali</strong> Youth Leadership 100 300 -<br />
Conference (Spring)<br />
12 Weekly Halaqa 1120 2240 1120 (Thus far)<br />
(Approximately<br />
140 persons per<br />
week)<br />
13 SSA Open House 84 75 100<br />
14 General Body Gatherings 560 600 270 (Thus far)<br />
(8 of them every year)<br />
15 <strong>Somali</strong> Independence Day<br />
Celebration (Summer)<br />
- 250 -<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>’s <strong>Association</strong> strives for serving both <strong>Somali</strong> students and the larger University<br />
community. <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>’s <strong>Association</strong>’s main purpose is to educate the University community about<br />
the rich and diverse <strong>Somali</strong> culture. Our Events are open to all University students, faculty, and staff.<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>’s <strong>Association</strong>’s events and participants have increased over the year. Not only has the<br />
attendance of our events increased, but also our membership has dramatically increased as well over<br />
the years. Consequently, with this increase of attendance and membership, the qualities of our events<br />
have drastically improved to a point where participants have given us high marks.<br />
Like many other student organizations, <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>’s <strong>Association</strong> takes surveys in many of our events<br />
to see what event participants think. However, many people who attend our events also attend our<br />
General Body meetings where we give them the chance to voice their opinions about previous and<br />
upcoming events. SSA holds bi-monthly General Body Meetings, which have turned out to be one of the<br />
most productive ways the Executive Board uses to gather useful information from the members and<br />
non-members who attend meetings.<br />
Page 6 of 8
2013-2014 <strong>Student</strong> Organization <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Services</strong> <strong>Fees</strong> Request<br />
University of Minnesota – Twin Cities<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong><br />
Describe your criteria for success. What does your organization hope to accomplish as a result of its<br />
activities? Please describe goals for short-term and long-term success:<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>’s <strong>Association</strong> aims to achieve the goals it sets each fiscal year. To determine success, we<br />
expect to meet and exceed all the goals <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>’s <strong>Association</strong> has set forth for that fiscal year.<br />
We know that not all the goals set-out every year are granted to be achieved, but the fundamental<br />
belief of our organization is to meet and excel all the goals set forth regardless of how difficult some of<br />
them may be. <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>’s <strong>Association</strong> hopes to accomplish tolerance of ambiguity. We want to<br />
promote and present our rich and diverse culture to the large University of Minnesota. Our events are<br />
intended to promote cultural diversity, where students of all colors, races, and religions come together<br />
to the shared beliefs of tolerance of ambiguity. In our short-term goals, we hope to increase the<br />
involvement of new students by doing various events to attract them. We want to increase our<br />
membership base by 35% in the next two years. For our long-term goals, we hope to educate and inform<br />
the larger University of Minnesota of our rich and diverse culture. We also aim to create a friendly<br />
atmosphere for both <strong>Somali</strong> and Muslim students to interact with other non-<strong>Somali</strong> and Muslim<br />
students. We hope to be a bridge between <strong>Somali</strong> students and the larger University communities<br />
where they come to cross connect with one another.<br />
How will your organization determine whether or not its goals have been met?<br />
The best ways to determine whether or not we met our goals is to look at our event turnout numbers.<br />
We believe one of the best ways to reach our goal is to have effective and timely advertising of our<br />
events. So far, we have had success with our advertising campaigns of our events. We will continuously<br />
check and evaluate the success rates of our events. Our goal is to attract <strong>Somali</strong> and non-<strong>Somali</strong><br />
students equally. We will do a routine check to see the percentages, and in the event we discover<br />
significant decline of one, we will re-evaluate advertising targets and determine what we will need to<br />
increase our population target. So far we have met and excelled in our efforts of targeting <strong>Somali</strong> and<br />
non-<strong>Somali</strong> students to attend our events.<br />
Who will be involved in evaluating your organization?<br />
We are very happy to have the Multicultural Center for Academic Excellence (MCAE) to work with our<br />
Executive Board to meet routinely to evaluate the progress of our organization and what needs to be<br />
done, if any at all. Anise McDowell has agreed to assist us in our organization, and she will be involved in<br />
our evaluations. We also have previous board members, such as the president of the 2011-2012 board,<br />
assisting us serving as our personal advisor.<br />
What will be done with any collected evaluation results?<br />
The collected evaluations will be used as guidance, by both the Executive Advisor and the Board, to<br />
determine the <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>’s <strong>Association</strong>’s performances. In our Monthly meeting with our Advisors,<br />
we will discuss all the evaluations that have been collected between meetings by our executive board<br />
and what needs to be done to improve performances if any is needed.<br />
Page 7 of 8
2013-2014 <strong>Student</strong> Organization <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Services</strong> <strong>Fees</strong> Request<br />
University of Minnesota – Twin Cities<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong><br />
Section 4: Reserve Accounts<br />
<strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>’s <strong>Association</strong> has a reserve account of its own with TCF Bank. This account is managed<br />
by the Vice President and Treasurer to maintain accurate sums of finances used for events. The<br />
President is also enlisted as an account holder, but the Vice President and Treasurer have access to debit<br />
cards. In the rare occasion that the Vice President or Treasurer might have to leave their position, the<br />
President will immediately request a debit card and take on their responsibility until a replacement can<br />
be found.<br />
Section 5: <strong>Fees</strong> Request<br />
The aforementioned details the recent hike in the attendance of students who are of <strong>Somali</strong> descent.<br />
Although we are happy with the increase in our numbers, it nonetheless poses logistical problems.<br />
Chiefly, we fear that with our current minuscule budget, we will be unable to properly meet their needs.<br />
We are therefore obliged to submit, for the term of 2013-2014 this request for an increase in grants.<br />
This is accompanied with a request for the sum of $38,590.00. This number is an increase from our<br />
previous year but it represents a reasonable estimate of the sums that we feel would allow us to<br />
accommodate our general body satisfyingly.<br />
Indicate at what percentage your organization will operate in the summer of 2013.<br />
The <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong> <strong>Association</strong> will operate on 5% of the amount awarded by the <strong>Student</strong>s <strong>Services</strong><br />
<strong>Fees</strong> for the summer of 2013. Most of this will be meeting the needs of students who are on-campus<br />
during the summer time. Our office will be staffed several times a week during the duration of the<br />
summer.<br />
Section 6: Description of Impact of a 10 Percent Reduction in <strong>Fees</strong> Request<br />
A 10% reduction would affect <strong>Somali</strong> <strong>Student</strong>’s <strong>Association</strong>’s ability to focus on improving programs and<br />
activities. This reduction may occupy the little time a student organization has, which the board<br />
members will spend doing fundraiser. To accommodate the ten percent reduction, we will find ways to<br />
cut back program expenses without cutting down the qualities.<br />
Page 8 of 8