HOW TO START A NEW CLUB:
To start a club, a group of students must form an executive board (at minimum a President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer) and execute the following five steps in order (see below).
Approach an SBA Senator to sponsor the chartering of a proposed club or organization, who will then notify the SBA President serving as Chair of the Legislative & Procedural Committee;
The sponsoring SBA Senator and SBA President will set up a petition for the club through Google Forms, and the proposed club must collect 50 signatures of the student body;
The sponsoring SBA Senator and SBA President will send a sample constitution to the proposed club leaders, who will draft their own and await approval of the draft Constitution from the Legislative and Procedural Committee;
If there is a need for funding of a specific event, the proposed club may fill out a Budget Request Form;
Reach out to your Senator representative and/or the SBA President to get your club pitch on the docket and to submit your all relevant documents (all required documents can be found in the “Club Starter Guide” below).
The chartering of the proposed club will be placed on the agenda for the following Senate meeting where proposed club leaders have an opportunity to pitch the SBA Senate. After you have pitched your club to the SBA, a vote will be held, and you will be notified of the outcome once it is rendered.
Clubs cannot be chartered until at least the second SBA meeting of the year. This is because the President’s Legislative & Procedural Committee will not be formed until after the first SBA meeting, and in order to review club Constitutions, this committee must be established. Also, as a rule, clubs are expressly prohibited from participating in the club fair until they are chartered.
If you have any questions on this process, reach out to your SBA representative or contact this email: CardozoLawSBA@gmail.com
HOW TO MAINTAIN A CLUB:
Below is a condensed version of your club’s responsibilities and a description of the tools you will use to conduct your club’s activities: (1) club organization; (2) budget; (3) events; (4) communications; and (5) suggestions from SBA.
Club Organization:
Establish an E-Board: For the first year, a club’s E-Board will be appointed by whoever founded the club. Every subsequent year, the E-Board will be selected in accordance with the mandates of the club’s Constitution (through a vote).
Attend Leadership Retreat: Every year, the President and Treasurer (or another E-Board member) will be required to attend a Leadership Retreat at the beginning of the school year. This Leadership Retreat will explain in detail how to upkeep your club. At the Retreat, your E-Board members will be given access to the Google Drive that houses all of the club information and necessary forms, but several forms are also linked here for your convenience.
Club Fair: Each year, the Club Fair will be held near the beginning of September. At least 1 member of the E-Board for each club will be required to attend, station a table, and represent the club to the student body. This is your opportunity to connect with the students and acquire new members. Make sure to get the names and emails of any students who are interested in joining the club.
Budget:
SBA Funding:
Presidents and Treasurers must attend the SBA leadership retreat in July/August to be eligible for SBA funding. At the Leadership Retreat, a deadline will be set for the submission of club budget proposals. You must complete each of these before using your budget. All must be completed by the first senate meeting on Nov. 20th.
SUBMIT your budget form (see below) to SBA Treasurer
Send SBA Treasurer and Sofia D’Alessandro your club booker
Schedule an appointment with Sofia through Calendly. You need to schedule and forward the SBA Treasurer the confirmation before you start booking events on 25Live. You will meet on Zoom.
Fall budgets: Fall budgets are voted on and approved by the SBA senate at the first fall senate meeting. Clubs have one chance to directly appeal these, as communicated by the SBA treasurer, and can request additional funds throughout the semester. Additional allocated funds may be limited based on availability. Money from the Fall Semester does NOT roll over into the Spring Semester. You must disclose to the SBA Treasurer 2 weeks before November 20th, if you are not expecting to use your entire budget.
Spring budgets: Spring budgets are voted on and approved by the SBA senate at the last fall senate meeting. Like in the fall, clubs have one chance to directly appeal these, as communicated by the SBA treasurer and can request additional funds throughout the semester. Additional allocated funds may be limited based on availability. An additional funding form is linked below.
Late proposals: Any late proposals may be subject to reductions, rejections, etc. Each club is permitted to appeal a budget approval, but review of these appeals is at the discretion of the SBA. Once a budget is approved, the Treasurer of the club will be responsible for updating the budget form as funds are expended throughout the year.
Overspending on Budgets: Treasurers - it is YOUR job to make sure your club's budget does not go over. If you order alcohol through catering you must confirm the amount of bottles to be charged so you can submit your post-event form. Going over your budget at all this semester will result in no budget for the following semester. This is your only warning.
Outside Funding:
Outside funding must be reported and must be reported on a post-event form with the total amount received. In order to ensure the SBA allocates budgets fairly we need you to be honest and transparent. If you submitted a budget and did not report it in your budget form you need to disclose this to SBA Treasurer ASAP. Even if you do not know the amount once you find out you need to report specific amounts and if you are reaching out to outside sources you must disclose on your budget or reply all to the budget request submitted. NO EXCEPTIONS. It must also go through Jacklyn Tavarez with me CC'd (Office of Business Affairs).
Need funding for a career-related event? Fill out this OCS Budget Request Form.
Events:
Each club is required to host 1 Event per semester. These Events come in many different shapes and sizes. You are encouraged to host an Event that speaks to your club’s membership and to host events in collaboration with other clubs.
General Body Meetings: Each club is required to host 2 General Body Meetings (“GBM”) each semester. Only 1 of these GBMs may have its food paid for through the club’s budget. This GBM may only have 2 pizzas and 1 case of water paid for through the club’s budget. Attendance must be taken (name and email).
25 Live:
This is the system Cardozo uses to reserve rooms for Events, GBMs, etc. See the 25 Live Guidelines below. The Event organizers must adhere to the procedures and deadlines to ensure that their events can be accommodated and one representative from your group must:
Read and sign the first page of the Event Planning Procedures (see below)
Attend a 25 Live training session with the Office of Special Events
Fill out the 25 Live Access Form
Catering requests: Book a meeting with Sofia D’alessandro to learn how to use 25Live and make catering requests. Please book your 15-30 minute meeting, Monday through Thursday from 10 AM to 4 PM via Calendly. Use the Catering Guidelines (see below) to fill out the budget proposal then submit a catering request via the Catering Request Form.
Room requests: Make room requests at least one week from the desired event date. The Office of Special Events cannot guarantee same-day confirmations.
Alcohol Policy:
If a club intends to serve alcohol at an Event, Cardozo’s Alcohol Policy must be followed (see below) and print and sign the forms in the document. The form must be emailed to cardozospecialevents@yu.edu no later than seven (7) calendar days before the event. You must only have alcohol in approved rooms: lobby and 3rd-floor lounge.
After the Event:
After the event, fill out the Post-Event Form within 1 week of the event.
Off-Campus Events:
Students can also host events Off-Campus. Off-campus events require contract approval, so more time is required. Please reach out to Jacklyn ASAP for off-campus events so she can do her best to get contracts coordinated between the venues and the school. Do this as early on in the semester as possible.
AV Requests:
To arrange basic AV support you must submit the AV Request Form after you have received a confirmation email from the Office of Special Events!
Communications:
Communications Office:
Requests for Communications Office designs, emails, or publicity must be made in writing via the Communications Requisition Form for events planned during the school year. All requests should be made at least six weeks prior to your event. Requests for flat-screen publicity should be made to the Communications Department at lawpr@yu.edu.
SBA Communications:
Ask the SBA to Post Your Event in the SBA Newsletter or on SBA’s Social Media: The SBA sends out a newsletter to the entire student body during the week of our monthly senate meeting. To have your event featured in the SBA newsletter, fill out THIS FORM by midnight on the Sunday prior to the newsletter’s release. To be featured on the SBA Instagram story, send us a DM with your flyer at least 3 days before the event. For more information on our social media guidelines, see our Social Media Guidelines below.
Today at Cardozo:
Cardozo’s Office of Special Events sends out daily and weekly emails, informing the student body of upcoming events at Cardozo. Each club is entitled to have 1 “Week-Of” email sent out through this emailing system a week prior to an Event, featuring the title of the Event, a description of the Event, and a contact email of one of the E-Board members. Each club is also entitled to 1 “Day-Of “email sent out the day of the Event, including the same information as the “weekly” email.
Fill out the Today at Cardozo Request Form. A request for these emails must be submitted at least two days before the email is to be dispersed to the student body:
Suggestions:
Plan ahead! Hosting an Event takes a lot of work; there are many moving parts: finding panelists/speaker(s), arranging a time that works for all participants, informing the club’s members, etc.
Hang up flyers on the various bulletin boards around school.
Make sure to keep your panelists, moderators, and any other participants up to date with any changed circumstances.
Need any other information about holding events and clubs? Check out our SBA Treasury Public Access Drive or review the SBA Student Director of Diversity and Inclusion’s presentation on How to Plan Inclusive Events.