The student activities fee now pays for the Knitting Club and Geeks and Nerds United.
Those are two of the two dozen new student groups approved by the Tufts Community Union Judiciary (TCUJ) this semester. The groups are allowed to use the Tufts name and receive funding.
To be recognized by the TCUJ, a group must go through a detailed process. The group's leaders and students interested in the group present the idea to the Office of Student Activities. Leaders must demonstrate that their groups are unique and will benefit the Tufts community.
Groups can change their purpose or become a subgroup of an existing organization if the idea is not unique.
"A club can also offer a different slant on something," TCUJ Vice Chair sophomore Marc Bouffard said. For example, the Leonard Carmichael Society is made up of several subgroups, including Traveling Treasure Trunk.
Combining groups, Bouffard said, is an "administrative way to pool resources and pool members."
The group then has to write a constitution outlining its purpose, goals, and rules. The constitution, TCUJ Chair sophomore Alex Clark said, is the "biggest technical hurdle" of the process.
Once the TCUJ has approved the group, it is subject to periodic review for re-recognition.
"If a group has become defunct it's important to derecognize them from a financial standpoint," Bouffard said. "It frees up financial resources. If there is a defunct group that is still recognized, [the TCUJ] is unable to recognize new, active groups in the same field."
The fall semester is usually reserved for new groups, while the spring semester is reserved for reviewing groups and ensuring they abide by University policies and their own constitutions, Bouffard said.
The TCUJ also hears complaints regarding any student groups. Any student can make a complaint, and past complaints have been issued on accounts of alleged discrimination, discouragement from joining and divergence from club constitutions.
There is both an administrative and a judicial branch in the TCUJ. The judicial branch, run by the Advocacy Chair sophomore Jamie Morgan is for students who need help within the University's bureaucracy. The TCUJ student advocates, managed by the Dean of Students Office, advise students of their rights.
"For a long time, if a student faced disciplinary action, they faced a nebulous process," Bouffard said.
