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Graduate and Professional Student Association
Graduate and Professional Student Association
A key function of GPSA is to fund events for Graduate Student Organizations (GSOs) to foster community and facilitate professional development among graduate and professional students. . Graduate and Professional students are welcome to join any and all GSOs at ASU by visiting Sun Devil Sync. Additionally, any graduate student can start a GSO. GSO’s are great ways to connect with other students, explore academic interests and non-academic interests.
These funds come from your graduate student programming fee and are organized by students, for students. The students responsible for the distribution of these funds are elected members of the GPSA Assembly.
GSO events often consist of conferences, speaker series, game nights, and networking events that use GPSA funding for items such as space rental, food, honorariums, promotional items, event supplies and other organizational expenses. GSOs can get funding for single events, or series of events with one funding request. Budget requests can be made for up to $3,750 per event.
Before starting a funding request for a Graduate Student Organization make sure your club is registered in Sun Devil Sync and review the GSO Funding Packet which contains detailed information related to GSO Funding policies. If you have any questions, reach out to the GPSA Assembly President Pro Tempore, Samantha Fessler, at sfessler@asu.edu.
The Graduate and Professional Student Association (GPSA) awards funds to Graduate Student Organizations (GSO), to assist clubs and organizations at Arizona State University, to create a robust student experience outside of the classroom. These funds come from your graduate student programming fee and are decided by students, for students. The students responsible for this distribution are elected to the GPSA Assembly and Assembly members represent each of the academic colleges offered at ASU campuses.
Operations funding will support once per fiscal year (FY) requests for GSOs to purchase items which support general operations, bolster recognition of the organization and demonstrate appreciation for current members and officers thereby strengthening the organization’s reputation. Prominent GSOs will be empowered to better serve graduate students and host impactful events. Thus, by supporting GSO operations, GPSA will be furthering its support for graduate and professional students at large.
GPSA does NOT fund purchases that have already occurred. Therefore, any expenses incurred prior to approval of the funding request CANNOT be subsequently funded or reimbursed.
Please visit the GSO Operations Funding Packet which contains detailed information related to GSO Funding policies, funding guidelines and applications, spending guidelines, methods of payment, prohibited purchases/activities, and planning guidelines for purchases!
A GSO can submit a funding request only for those events to take place in the three (3) month cycle subsequent to filing an application.
Latest Deadline for Event Funding Applications: The application (budget request) and application materials detailed herein must be submitted no later than 11:59 pm on the first day of the month, one month prior to an event.
Earliest Deadline for Event Funding Applications: The application and application materials detailed herein may be submitted as early as 11:59 pm on the first day of the month, three months prior to an event.
Example of Deadline Structure: if an event is scheduled for any day in September, the application may be submitted as early as June 1st at 11:59 pm but is due in Sun Devil Sync no later than August 1st at 11:59 pm.
No Exceptions are made to the GSO Funding deadlines.
GPSA does NOT fund events that have already occurred. Therefore, any expenses incurred prior to approval of the funding request CANNOT be subsequently funded or reimbursed. Though there are many methods available to pay for an approved request, no individual student may receive more than $999.99 in reimbursement. It is important to consider the funding and spending policies outlined in our guiding documents during the event planning stages.
Funding is not guaranteed, please plan events accordingly.
To be eligible to receive funding, your organization must meet the following:
No single event budget can exceed 5% of the approved fiscal year GSO Event Funding Budget I.e. if the current year’s budget is $75,000, no single event can exceed $3,750. Additionally, no single GSO can be allocated more than 20% of the overall GSO Funding Budget for events per fiscal year. For events which occur prior to the approval of a subsequent fiscal year’s budget (Applications received June 1st-August 1st), the limit will remain the same as the previous fiscal year until the GPSA Assembly Votes to approve the new fiscal year budget in August of each year.
GSO Funding Application = Budget Request completed in SunDevilSync
Budget Requests can only be submitted by one of club/organization’s 3 listed officers
Funding applications are submitted as Budget Requests in SunDevilSync. Only GSO officers listed as administrators for their organization on SunDevilSync can access the funding application forms. If you are a club officer not listed as an administrator, contact the SunDevilSync administrator. Only the three listed officers in your organization’s SunDevilSync page will be allowed to initiate and complete any funding requests. Submissions from advisors or general members will not be considered. Once your club is registered you are ready to go in submitting a funding request for your Club or Organization.
*Consult the GSO Operations Funding Packet for details on submitting a Budget Request
The GPSA GSO Funding Committee convenes monthly to consider GSO Funding Applications. The GSO Funding Committee will meet the 1st week of each month. The GSO Funding Committee will debate and vote on funding allocation for each application cycle. The GSO Funding Committee may request additional information from GSOs prior to a final vote. The committee considers, among other things, the:
The committee considers, among other things, the:
The GSO Funding Committee will vote on GSO Funding Allocation from each cycle during the monthly committee meetings. GSOs will be notified of their funding status within 72 hours of the committee vote. The GSO Funding Committee will provide a report to the GPSA Assembly each month which outlines budget utilization to retain transparency and integrity of the GSO Funding Processes.
Please note that along this path, the GSO Funding committee may modify your budget request. As such, your request may be approved, partially approved, or denied.The Assembly President Pro Tempore will communicate the outcome to you via SunDevilSync. The outcome will be located in the comments section of the request and the system will automatically send an email to the requester. In the case of a partial approval, typically some line items are approved and others are not approved. In that case and the case of denial, GPSA will provide feedback to the requester on the rationale in the comments section on SunDevilSync.
The GPSA Assembly meets on the 3rd Friday of each month and will review allocated monies by the GSO Funding Committee in a given cycle via an itemized budget presentation which reflects the GSO Funding Budget utilization.
And more! Depending on the needs of the GSO, other items can be included in operational funding to support the daily needs of the organization.
Please contact the APPT Samantha Fessler sfessler@asu.edu with additional questions regarding fundable items.All GSOs that are awarded funding from GPSA must submit a Purchase Request in SunDevilSync to utilize/receive allocated funds.
There are several payment methods available to purchase approved items on a successfully funded application (budget request). Only the three listed officers in your organization’s SunDevilSync page will be allowed to initiate and complete any transactions, so plan accordingly. It is the responsibility of the GSO to consult GSO Funding Packets and reach out to appropriate contacts to confirm appropriate methods/documentation for purchasing.
Consult the GSO Operations Funding Packet for more detailed information on submitting Purchase Requests, planning and spending resources, and methods of payment for line items on an approved budget request.
If you have any questions regarding how to spend awarded funds or purchase items on an approved budget request please contact the ASASU GSPA business team BEFORE spending occurs.
GPSA Business Operations Specialist: Heather Wood heather.wood1@asu.edu
GPSA Assembly President Pro Tempore: Samantha Fessler sfessler@asu.edu
GPSA Business Operations Specialist: Heather Wood heather.wood1@asu.edu
These GSO Funding Resources can also be found on the GSO Funding SunDevilSync Page! Access the GSO Funding Packets in the “documents” section of this SunDevilSync page.
