True, maybe it is just semantics but still it is a temporary position so what exactly are you pledging to? Maybe a better way to handle it is to take an oath of office (since most RGs are chosen or elected by a panel or their chapter). Taking an oath of office assumes you are no longer held to the oath after you are out of office. Plus there are so many rules an RG has to abide by maybe it would help them maintain order by saying and repeating an oath?

Not exactly. We have 1,000 from Student Senate too, and on June 30 is the last day we can use money from that. We have about 400 left, and if it's not used we lose it. So I asked the other officers and they said it was fine. We have separate budget that comes from chapter dues.

All I asked if it was Okay if she had the shirt. She can wear it over the summer and until summer recruitment. Apparently it's fine since it's not a real organization. Why did I buy a shirt for a girl who goes to a different school? Because I can. Some letters to wear since she can't wear her own. At her school they don't have a name. They just do what a Rho Gam does. They all call themselves Rho Gam's anyway but it's not a official term. So why buy an "official" shirt? I mean, why not? Just wanted to check I wasn't breaking a major rule, and apparently I'm not. Calm down...remember, it's just a shirt with cotton letters. Yes of course they have meaning, but in reality it's just cotton.

This sounds remarkably stupid and is a waste of money.

I pray that your student affairs directors don't audit your IFC board.

The student affairs director in me is cringing over this. I hope you are not on my campus.

The point that you are missing is why did you use IFC funds to buy a shirt for YOUR cousin, who goes to a DIFFERENT school, and has NO CONNECTION to your campus. The $400 you were going to lose could have been donated to a philanthropy (or spread out among several), supplies for the IFC, etc., etc. People on here are questioning why you used campus funds (and, apparently, got permission to do so) to purchase a PERSONAL item for your cousin.

If you wanted your cousin to have a Rho Gamma shirt, fine. But, it should have been purchased with YOUR PERSONAL MONEY, not IFC funds.

Exactly. I can't believe he isn't getting this. I mean, it's obvious he was going to buy the stupid shirt for his cousin no matter what anyone said. If the other officers really thought this was fine...I'm sorry, but you all need to be kicked out of your offices. It's not the amount of money that matters, it's the concept of what is right and what is wrong. It's wrong to use organizational money on personal items, no matter how much or how little. This is the kind of thinking that got several national officers of a sorority into lots and lots and LOTS of trouble.

Yep. Heck, I think a giant kegger would be a less objectionable use of that money.

I agree - what a waste of money.

The meanie in me disagrees with your second statement, though. I hope the student affairs directors DO audit the IFC board. If something like this was ok'd for one group, there's no telling what has been ok'd for other groups. Considering the state of the economy, I can't imagine there's a school out there that couldn't benefit from putting a stop to such questionable spending practices.

Okay, I really do understand where everyone is coming from. I am sincerely sorry that this seemed like an abuse of power/money. The reason I even thought about using our IFC budget is for the part that we lose. Student Senate is so particular. We are given this 1,000 that has certain uses. We cannot give any leftovers to philanthropy. We would if we could. The 400 or so remaining was for food, printing, a contest we no longer sponsor, leftover money from our new officer retreat, leftover money from having speakers, leftover money from Summer Orientation 2011, and leftover money from for apparel. We saved a lot on apparel this year, so we had a lot left over. We don't have any more apparel to buy at all, and we're just going to lose all of it, so I asked and it was fine to buy a shirt to benefit someone else. It had a purpose, whether its official Rho Gamma or not. Let's end this, please, because this blew up way bigger than it needed to be.

Why not? It seems difficult to believe that any student government would say "No! Don't give your leftover money to charity!" If the answer is "because then they'd give us less money next year because we didn't use all of it for what we said we would this year," which is my first thought, then you absolutely could've given it to philanthropy.

I have a harder time believing that permission was granted from the proper authorities for you to make a personal purchase.

I just said this. The money is allotted to certain costs. We're lucky enough we get money from Student Senate; in fact, we're getting less next year. Not because we didn't spend it all, just because we are. Today is July 1 and this year we only got 500. Has nothing to do with the money from last year. We used what we could, and now it's gone. No big deal. Please people, I got the approval, so just grow up and back down.

Senate doesn't allow money to budget for philanthropy because it doesn't represent the service aspect; it's just easy money they would give away. People like seeing Greeks do work and earn the money, not just take it from your Senate budget. Everything we buy regardless needs Senate Approval, so since it was under Apparel, we're fine.

But it wasn't apparel FOR ANYONE FROM YOUR SCHOOL, FOR ANYTHING TO DO WITH YOUR GREEK SYSTEM. Shit, call me up next year if you have leftover funds because there's a really cute pair of jeans I want.

The philanthropy story is kind of ridiculous and I really don't believe it, but let's say it's true. Did you think for a minute about other ways you could have used this money to benefit IFC? Prepaying speaker fees, stocking up on computer supplies, printing and sending an all-Greek alumni newsletter, doing an alumni ANYTHING?

No one is going to "back down" because no one can believe that you don't understand what you did was WRONG.

We understand that IFC would lose the $400 if they didn't use it. What nobody is understanding is why you didn't use your own personal money to buy a personal gift for your cousin.

Even if the left over money is okay to use for apparel, I'm sure your advisors would explain that it is for IFC apparel, not for a Rho Gamma shirt for an NPC member at another campus.

As a student affairs professional, I will tell you - Brogamma did, was unethical. Don't argue the point, you seem to miss the point that the money was intended to stay on your campus.