Student Congress appropriated $9,675 to the group Carolina Students for Life to pay for its Oct. 13 event “Best Abortion Discussion Ever,” despite lower-than-expected student turnout at the event and controversy surrounding a display by the group last year.
Overestimation of the event’s turnout led to a disproportionate amount of fee money being spent per student, which will detract from the amount other groups can request for the rest of the year.
The event, which cost approximately $70 per attendee in student fees, was attended by 138 people — far fewer than the estimated 500 attendees on which the allocation was based.
Each student pays $39 a year into a student organizations fee, which is distributed among Student Congress and several large campus groups to fund student activities.
To put the event’s cost in perspective, College Republicans spent about $16 to $20 per attendee to bring Jonah Goldberg, editor-at-large of the National Review Online, in late September.
Carolina Students for Life originally requested about $16,500 in funding for the year. Student Congress decided to give the group about half of that, with the possibility of additional money after the group raised some on its own.
The Oct. 13 debate cost a total of $11,100. The group raised $1,425.
The group came before Congress the same night of the debate and received an additional $1,325.
Congress members expressed mixed feelings about providing additional funding for the event because of the controversy sparked by the group’s anti-abortion display last year.
The graphic images on Polk Place were difficult to avoid because of their large size and proximity to classrooms. Congress appropriated $5,000 for that display.
The setup failed to effectively warn students of what to expect, said Student Congress Speaker Joe Levin-Manning, who voted against the Oct. 13 appropriations request.
Carolina Students for Life Treasurer Stephanie Maxwell said the animosity created by that display caused Congress to hesitate before granting the additional money. Maxwell said Congress was also apprehensive that student fees would fund 87 percent of the debate’s cost.
“We want to hold them accountable for what happened last year,” Levin-Manning said. “That’s why we didn’t want to pay for the entire event.”
Congress’ appropriations required that the group secure a location with at least a 500-person capacity, which it did by securing the Student Union Great Hall.
Student Body Treasurer Jennings Carpenter explained the reasoning behind the decision.
“We try to look at where the money we allocate can be used most effectively,” he said. “We try to get the most bang for our buck.”
Even though only 138 people attended the event, Jennings said he thought it was a good use of student fees because it facilitated campus discussion about abortion.
Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
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