Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: administrivia
Date: Sun, 20 Dec 1992 22:49:22 -0500

Michael Fenwick of Fotheringhay, of the Barony of Namron, in the 
Kingdom of Ansteorra (Norman, Oklahoma) asked me:
 
> Good my Lord, when I was a student here at the University of 
> Oklahoma, lo these mumblety-mumble years agone, the administration 
> declined to recognize us (the then Shire) as a full-fledged student 
> organization because the officers were not elected by a vote of the 
> membership. Have you run into any similar difficulties? If so, were 
> you able to circumvent them? How? 
 
    90 percent of solving any problem is to state it correctly. You 
don't need the University of Oklahoma to recognise the Shire of 
Namron. The SCA, Inc. has already done that. Your members, both 
students and non-students alike, just want some of the benefits of 
being a recognised student group.
 
    This is best done, I believe, by getting the University to 
recognise a liaison or buffer organization. Charter that organization 
according to the University regs. Go ahead and elect student group 
officers. It's harmless. Agree to rub blue mud in your bellybuttons, 
if that's what they want. Just remember to phrase that charter so that 
everything refers back to the real group, your local SCA branch. 
 
    It is hard to anticipate, from place to place, the rich variety of 
restrictions that a bureaucracy can impose for the Good of Society. 
What you have to do is quietly investigate the site-specific 
restrictions in advance. Usually, these are available for the asking 
in written form. 
    
    DANGER: DON'T TAKE THEIR MONEY! Universities will sometimes give 
monetary allowances to student groups. You have the ability to decline 
this money. The money comes with strings. Generally, you must account 
for it and spend it according to their guidelines. If you spend it on 
something non-consumable, like armor, you need their permission to 
dispose of it in any way. This is to prevent fraternities from buying 
a pc for admin purposes, declaring it obsolete, and selling it for 
beer money. You will find yourself trying to track whether something 
is university or shire property. Not good. 
 
    Also, it is important to make it clear to the members of the sca 
branch that the student group is a dummy organization with no 
meaningful social reality. You don't want an artificial division 
between students and non-students. It prevents both parties from 
playing the game they came here to play. It can actually shut down 
your group, worst case. Having two bank accounts makes that impossible 
to prevent. Possession of money gives an organization a life of its 
own, even if its members don't intend it. 
    
    Set this up the right way, from the start, and you will have a 
good and healthy arrangement that is to the benefit of everyone in the 
shire/barony/canton. Usually, the student group provides free sites 
for meetings, workshops, fighter practice, and even small revels. The 
SCA provides insurance to protect you in case of accident, a social 
framework that gives you focus and a relationship with neighboring 
groups, and access to outside support and expertise. Again, your 
individual mileage may vary. 
 
                             Henry Best, Isenfir, Atlantia

From: Beth.Appleton@f4229.n124.z1.fidonet.org (Beth Appleton)
Sender: FredGate@ocitor.fidonet