The $276,000 question: ASB ponders how to spend money left over from previous years

September 22, 2015 — by Apoorv Kwatra and Trevor Leung

As a result of leftover money from past class funds, ASB events and donations, ASB now has a total of about $276,000 in its bank account.

As a result of leftover money from past class funds, ASB events and donations, ASB now has a total of about $276,000 in its bank account.

With this large amount of money on hand, the administration and ASB have decided to begin brainstorming projects at ASB meetings that the money could be used on, hoping to give back to the school in a permanent way.

“The money was made by students, and it needs to be used for students as much as possible,” principal Paul Robinson said.

According to assistant principal Kerry Mohnike, the money held by ASB is a combination of that from graduating classes, who have chosen to leave their funds to future classes rather than transferring them to a private bank account,  donations from Sports Boosters and the ASB package students purchase annually. 

“You can say that there is a lump sum of money in the ASB, but it’s very dynamic money,” Mohnike said. “There’s money coming in and money going out all the time.”

The ASB and the administration are considering using this money to install new water fountains, improve student bathrooms,  add a new mosaic in the quad and even create a metal statue of a falcon, among other ideas.

Some students think the funds should help solve more specific problems.

“Lights for the outdoor basketball courts would be helpful,” junior Jonathan Cai said. “Sometimes, it gets really dark when we all want to keep playing, so lights would help us do that.”

Robinson has also suggested that a portion of the ASB money be used for a new scoreboard at the Benny Pierce Field that “meets the needs of every sport.” According to Robinson, the current scoreboard is “old,” “faded” and in a poor location. 

Money for such projects would have to come from ASB or other sources such as donations, because the $44 million from the Measure E Bond has already been designated for other projects, according to Robinson.

“It’s not like we are going to have any [money] left over [from the bond],” Robinson said.

However, ASB members want to spend the money on something that benefits everyone in the school.

“We just want to make sure [the project] doesn’t pertain to one person or to one certain group like sports or music,” said ASB treasurer junior Mitali Shanbhag.

Other students have come up with ideas for spending the money that would affect a larger group of students, such as using it to improve the school’s food.

“We should spend more money in investing in a better school lunch system,” junior Gautham Arunkumar said. “As of now, food can only be acquired at certain times in a certain part of school.”

ASB hopes to consider more student opinions like these before it reaches a decision regarding the money’s use.

“We’re going to get [more] student input [through ASB meetings] so everyone has a say,” Shanbhag said.

Ultimately, however, ASB has the final say on the fate of the funds. Ideas for projects will go to the ASB executive board, which will then be able to approve the appropriate funds for the school.

If students have any ideas about what to do with the money, they can attend the weekly ASB meetings. ASB has also posted a form in the Saratoga High School ‘15-‘16 Facebook group where students can send in their ideas for consideration.

Though the administration can only suggest where and how the money is used, Robinson hopes that the use of the “one-time” money will have lasting benefits.

“This money isn’t going to be happening year after year after year,” Robinson said. “Do something that’s going to last for a while. See what kind of a legacy [you] want to leave.”

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