Fliers for the $30 per year student activity fee advertising that funding would support Greek Week, an exclusively greek event, are misleading, officials in Greek Life said yesterday.
Eighty percent of the estimated $1.2 million to $1.4 million generated by the fee would be used to bring concerts and speakers to campus, while 15 percent would go toward general distribution to campus organizations. The remaining 5 percent is expected to be refunded.
However, events such as Greek Week that cater to specific campus organizations would not receive funding from the activity fee.
According to activity fee bylaws, the funds must be used to sponsor an event that is open to the entire student body.
Greek Week is an event intended to build greek community on campus, and therefore is not open to the entire student body, said Beth Conder, Greek Life co-coordinator.
The fact that the fee could be used to fund Greek Week is "not true at all," Conder said.
University Activities Board President Greg Billings, who helped create the fee proposal, said the possibility that the activity fee would fund Greek Week was mentioned on the fliers to attract greeks.
"We have (Interfraternity Council) and Panhellenic representatives on the board, so we wanted to somehow have greek affiliation on the fliers," Billings said.
One side of the flier lists the breakdown of what the money could be used for.
On the reverse side, the flier lists possible bands and activities that could come to campus as a result of the fee, such as a Tool concert, comedian Dave Chappelle and Greek Week.
However, the greek event they chose was not the most appropriate because it does not involve the entire student body, Billings said.
"(Greek Week) most likely would not be included," Billings said.
In making the fliers, UAB wanted to advertise that clubs and organizations, including greek organizations, are encouraged to apply for funding from the activity fee. Billings said they probably should have advertised a different greek event that would fall in the fee's bylaws.
"Lute Olson's Cat Walk would target more towards the bylaws of the fee," he said.
Christina Garcia, a secondary education senior, said she doesn't know what is or isn't true on the fliers.
"It makes me question everything else they put on the flier," she said.
Chris Bullins, Greek Life co-coordinator, said it would be more likely that Greek Life would request funding to sponsor an educational speaker for greek students who would also be open to the whole campus.
Associated Students of the University of Arizona Sen. Matt Harris, who worked on the fee proposal, is unsure why Greek Week appears on the fliers.
He said it is up to the Student Activity Fee Committee to allocate where money goes, so Greek Week could potentially be an event that receives money. At the same time, he said, the event is exclusively for greek students.
"Accidents happen. Greek Week is an event that affects a large number of students, even though it is basically for greek students," he said.