In a university of 24,000 people, some people may have a difficult time finding their role on campus. As long as one of those people has 15 friends who all love the same things then they can create their own role on campus. That's right, for any Auburn student who cannot find a single thing on campus they are interested in can start their own club in a few simple steps.
"When a group wants to start, the biggest thing is finding 15 students with similar interests, then it snowballs from there," said Tim King, the vice president of student affairs.
In addition to finding the first 15 members, a potential group must also have a faculty advisor and draft a constitution and bylaws. After a group has submitted all of the necessary information, a representative from the group and its advisor must appear before the Student Organization Board. If the group is approved by the Student Organization Board, the University grants t h e group a one-year provisional status. Jonathan Phillips, junior in radio, television and film, said starting the Auburn Film Society was no easy task.
"It took the entire Auburn Film Society to get the group started up," Phillips said. "We had to write a constitution, decide on how our meetings would be set up, and figure out what direction we wanted to move in. Creating a club is, no pun intended, a group effort."
Most groups that fill out their paperwork correctly and appear before the Student Organization Board are granted provisional status.
"After they become a group, they can reserve rooms in the Student Center for free, they can get a mailbox, they can appear in the Glom, they can use the Auburn University name and logo and they can have access to webspace," King said. "After they become permanent they can request funding."
Scott Russel, the president of the Environmental Awareness Organization, said becoming an official university group helped spread his groups message of conservancy.
"Being affiliated with the University brings us a degree of credibility and clout that we can use to reach other organizations and individuals outside the Auburn community," Russel said. "Also, we are more easily able to spread our message to the student body by being able to table and hold meetings and events on campus." A group can become permanent after completing its one-year provisional status while maintaining a membership of at least 15 members.
The group must also attend the president's meeting at the end of the year and the advisor must maintain their advisor certification.
If a group does not perform these actions they are put on probationary status.
King said groups are usually put on probationary status for simple mistakes.
"Probably the easiest thing to do is update the database," King said. "But they might not remember to change the information so the new officers don't get the news about a meeting they have to attend."
Students who wish to start an athletic club must complete more steps than a normal University group.
In addition to completing the normal steps to becoming a Universitysponsored group, the club sport must also receive approval from Campus Recreation. "My first thing is can it be covered in the liability insurance," said club sports director Diane Harper. "Then the facilities: do we have them or are they close by?"
Harper said the University's insurance strictly prohibits student groups involving firearms.
Roughly 50 percent of club sports applications are approved, according to Harper.
"Some just don't have the facilities, like baseball" Harper said. "We have a great working relationship with the city but they don't have the facilities for us to have a team. I'd love to have baseball, but we would need the cities facilities right when their season is in full swing."
King said the University encourages students to create their own groups.
"It's just a good thing for students to get involved in," King said. "I think it's one of those things you'll remember most about your college days."
More information about student groups is available auburn.edu/sga/ organizations.
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