For IU Student Government’s 2024 fiscal year, the governing body is dealt a budget of $210,000 — 0% of which goes towards stipends for the student officers. This hasn’t always been the norm for IUSG, which spent close to 20% of its budget on stipends in the 2022-23 academic year.
The three-branch representative democracy was founded in 1948 as the “Student Senate.” IUSG is made up of the executive branch led by the Student Body President, the legislative branch composed of the Student Body Congress and the judicial branch, consisting of the Student Body Supreme Court and any other lower courts congress creates.
The budget they are given to work with each year is funded by the student activity fee which all students are mandated to pay. The Spring 2024 IUSG General Election is approaching, scheduled for March 18-20.
Just during the 2022-23 academic year, $35,580 of the $178,130 budget — about 20% — was used for student stipends, divided between the three branches and an election commission.
Even when IUSG officers received stipends, the allocation varied greatly when compared to other public universities in Indiana. The Collegiate Commons, a news outlet for students at Indianapolis universities, contacted the IDS addressing the budgets for IU Bloomington, Purdue West Lafayette and IUPUI student governments.
During the 2022-23 academic year, the IUPUI student government put a total of $46,036.67 on officer stipends, about 52% of their budget. Student stipends for IUSG were less than 20% of the total budget, and Purdue University Student Government allocated less than 7% of their total $110,529 budget for 2022-2023.
Aman Gandhi, IUSG treasurer, said via email the decision to remove IUSG student stipends was made by the incumbent administration.
“The IGNITE administration does not distribute stipends,” Gandhi said in the email. “This was a result of the stipends being disproportionate and affecting students who have scholarships. Stipends at IU are set up in a harmful and detrimental way for those awarded scholarships, which is more than half of the executive cabinet and congressional leadership.”
Previous IUSG administrations distributed stipends, but not all members received them. Gandhi said the IGNITE administration prides itself on equality, which meant it didn't feel it was fair for some IUSG officers to receive stipends while others did not.
“We have tried to work with IU Administration to figure things out, but it doesn’t seem like there is much that can be done,” Gandhi said in the email. “Despite having a larger budget, we prioritize student-facing initiatives. Our aim is to ensure fairness and equity in all our operations while enhancing the student experience.”
All IUSG records — including budgets — are public for IU students to view. Allocations for the 2023-24 academic year include $14,000 for culture center donations and $30,000 for emergency contraceptives.
Nicholas Yax, Purdue Student Government press secretary, said in a statement via email their student government was still allocating stipends for President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Senate President Pro-Tempore, Chief Justice and Chief of Staff as of the current session. The total allocation comes out to $7,000, $3,500 being paid out each semester.
“All of our officers really care deeply about making a difference here at Purdue and the stipend is a great way to reward those who put in the most work even if it's not a massive amount,” Yax said in the email. “At the end of the day, we've all made the choice to volunteer our time to better Purdue!”
The IDS was unable to obtain a budget for the 2023-24 session from the IUPUI student government before the time of publication.
[CORRECTION: A previous version of this article incorrectly identified the date of the IUSG election. It has been updated to reflect the fact that the voting period is March 18-20.]
