[Editor鈥檚 note: This is part 1 of a 4-part series looking at the student-led ]
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Obtaining money for research and projects can be difficult to come by, especially for students who have yet to establish themselves in their given fields. Without this monetary component, ideas can be left unrealized. At CU 麻豆影院, a student-led pot of money works to solve this problem.
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Managing more than $1.5 million each year,听the (EEF) bridges the gap between ideas and their manifestations for engineering students at CU 麻豆影院. The same people who benefit from the听fund听are those who pay into it, as the EEF听comes from engineering听student fees.
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鈥淚t鈥檚 by the students, for the students,鈥澨齭ays听Trevor Bennett, former chair of the EEF and now a graduate member of the committee. 鈥淲e are representatives of the student body, so it is our job to apply a critical eye to the proposals we see in order to invest in the students鈥� interests.鈥�
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A听committee of 12 members manages the fund: six undergraduate students, three graduate, and three non-voting faculty/staff advisors.听Students vote on how to spend and fund their peers鈥櫶齧oney听and projects, a unique opportunity among major universities and colleges.
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鈥淢any engineering student groups, and pieces of equipment that student groups utilize at CU 麻豆影院, are funded by EEF,鈥� said Bennett. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a pooling of resources to encourage and support innovative ideas.鈥�
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Unlike many of the long-term investments made at the university, the听fund听has a听swift听turnaround time鈥攆inancing听projects with the听money听paid into it that year. This gives engineering students access to the听money听they put in for projects that will further their education and passions.
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鈥淲e ask, what investments should we make right now for the current student body?鈥� said Bennett.
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The proposal process is open to all engineering students with an idea. The fund handles proposals from different tiers offering varying amounts of funding. Mini proposals, which max out at $3,000, are the most commonly submitted and funded. How they are chosen is based on four pieces of criteria: uniqueness and innovation, student impact, financial sensibility, and quality.
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Increasing awareness of the fund is a priority.
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鈥淚t鈥檚 not general knowledge, and we want to change that,鈥� said Bennett. 鈥淚f students are contributing to the fund, they should be aware of this resource to which they have access.鈥�
The next call for proposals begins early in the Fall semester. More information into the fund and the proposal process can be found at听.
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Tim Drugan-Eppich is an administrative assistant in the College of Engineering and Applied Science.