VSG Co-Sponsorships Information

VSG maintains a budget of approximately $30,000 for supporting student organization events on campus. The Co-Sponsorship program consists of two parts, overseen by the VSG Director of Programming and Executive Vice President, respectively:

1) General Co-Sponsorships- Awarded at levels up to $500

2) Co-Sponsorship of the Month- Applications submitted on the 15th of the month before the event unless otherwise noted, eligible for up to $1000 and support from VSG as determined by the hosting organization

Co-Sponsorship deliberations take place at the end of the weekly VSG Executive Board meeting and notification of application status is handled by the Director of Programming. Emails are sent to organization representatives once decision allocations have been reached, and If applications are incomplete or more information is needed to inform the decision making process, the Director of Programming will submit questions via email about each proposal (if necessary) before rendering a decision to the appropriate individuals. In addition to allocation decisions, VSG may suggest alternative sources of financial support for event management.

Vanderbilt Student Government seeks to build collaborative partnerships with all student organizations, serving as a resource to help improve programming efforts, maximize the use of resources, and promote the success and hard work of our campus partners.

All questions about the VSG General Co-Sponsorship Program should be sent to Director of Programming Jessica Brunelle (jessica.m.brunelle@vanderbilt.edu). Questions regarding the VSG Co-Sponsorship of the Month should be sent to VSG Executive Vice President Mark Cherry (mark.j.cherry@vanderbilt.edu).

Guidelines for VSG Co-Sponsorship Program (effective January 1, 2012)

1.) The VSG Co-Sponsorship fund is geared at funding school-wide events open to the entire Vanderbilt Community. The fund can be utilized by all undergraduate and graduate organizations registered with the university with a recognized center code and account number.

Note: VSG Co-Sponsorships are intended for programs not facilitated by VSG departments, committees, councils, or any other aspect of the organization.

2.) The VSG Co-sponsorship Program will fund a maximum of three events per semester per organization. This limit exists to ensure that all organizations have an equal opportunity at receiving co-sponsorship funds regardless of when the organization hosts programs. The number of times an organization has been funded by VSG must be accurately represented on the co-sponsorship application under the “previous VSG funding” section.

3.) VSG Co-Sponsorships will not exceed half of the total budget for an organization’s event. General Co-Sponsorships are awarded at a maximum level of $500, and the Co-Sponsorship of the Month Award has a maximum allocation of $1000. For example, if the budget total of the event is $1500, then the highest amount that the organization will receive will be $750 (even if involved in the Co-Sponsorship of the Month Program). If the budget for a general co-sponsorship event is $400, then the highest amount the organization will receive is $200.

4.) All eligible events for the Co-sponsorship fund must be a single day event open to the entire student body. If an event consists of multiple days or mini-events, then each application may only reference one specific event or date in order to be considered eligible. Additionally, VSG Co-Sponsorship allocations cannot be used towards speaker’s fees or travel arrangements (flights, lodging, etc).

5.) The following will be taken into account during Co-Sponsorship deliberations:
- Did the application thoroughly outline an honest representation of the event budget?
- Will this event have a large impact on campus, and does the expected attendance represent this impact?
- Was the application submitted according to all Co-sponsorship fund criteria deadlines (General co-sponsorship applications must be submitted at least 7 days prior to the organization’s event and CSOM applications must be submitted on the 15th of the month prior to the event in order to be eligible for funding. This provision can be waived if there is a unanimous VSG Executive Board vote)
- Has the organization sought diverse organizations and opportunities to assit with the funding showing proactivity in recognizing a financial need?

6.) In order to be eligible for future Co-sponsorship funding, each organization must submit a program evaluation form to the Director of Programming within one week following their event, and this form must provide an accurate account of the event.

• Programming evaluations will be attached to email notification of allocation decision
• If the one week deadline has not been met, the organization will be notified by the Director of Programming that they are ineligible to apply for future VSG Co-Sponsorships for a period no longer than a 3 month (90 day) time line from the date of their event (note: time only counts while school is in session, breaks do not go into time)
• The program evaluation form is also available on the website by clicking here.

Things to include in a good event budget:
1.) Your entire itemized budget for the event, not just the portion that you are looking to receive co-sponsorship funds for.
2.) Specific break-downs of budget items, as well as a budget total.

If you have any other questions regarding the Co-Sponsorship guidelines or the application, please contact Director of Programming Jessica Brunelle (jessica.m.brunelle@vanderbilt.edu)