Financial Officer: Alyssa Schwartz (aaschwartz@stanford.edu)
Amount Approved: $14,835
Full Budget

What is the mission and purpose of your student group?

Student Initiated Courses, an ASSU Service Project, allows
students the opportunity to teach their peers about subjects they
find interesting and important.  Most SICs fill a gap in the
Stanford curriculum, or are so timely as to be impossible to
offer by the University.  SIC gives students the opportunity to
learn in a democratic environment, while receiving University
credit for their work.  Classes are usually taught seminar-style,
to allow for intimate interaction and an enhanced learning
environment.  The program also offers student instructors close
faculty-student interaction and experience in designing syllabi
and instruction.  Through academic diversity, student initiative,
and the opportunity for student groups to use SIC as a means of
educating others about their work, Student Initiated Courses
gives the Stanford community a unique and important facet of
education.  For more information about SIC and the classes it
offers, please visit our website:  http://assu.stanford.edu/sic.

Why are you requesting Special Fees?

With the wide range and large number of courses offered through
Student Initiated Courses, it is difficult to provide each course
with the optimal resources through the general fee alone.  We
allow, and encourage, each class to bring guest speakers, to
provide ample learning aids (ie, handouts), and to cohese as a
group, through class dinners.  These costs, essentially identical
to those of normal University seminars, require a budget more
substantial than the general fee can offer.  Furthermore, SIC is
a program that is fundamentally democratic in style and purpose. 
As such, the student body should have the opportunity to fund SIC
democratically.

What are the three largest line item requests in your budget and why?

SIC's largest funding requests are for Honoraria, Meeting Food,
and non-marketing Copies.  Honoraria allows student instructors
to supplement their own discussions and lectures with experts in
the fields about which they are learning.  Food provides classes
the opportunity to unite as a group.  Photocopies, provided by
the program, limits the financial burden placed on the students
enrolled in a Student Initiated Course.

If you applied for Special Fees last year, is there an increase in the
amount you're seeking this year?  If so, why?

SIC's Special Fee request this year is significantly less than in
previous years, due to internal reductions of our expenses.