Members of the Oshkosh Student Association and Student Allocations Committee had a recent conflict, they have a very good relationship said Joseph Ferlo, controller of allocations for the SAC.

Ferlo said the conflict arose between the SAC and certain individuals of OSA over chair election procedure.

There was a candidate from outside the committee who had served on allocations in the past, and was nominated, later winning the election.

“It wasn’t until after the election that it was brought to our attention that it was in violation in our bylaws for someone outside our committee to run,” Ferlo said. “The conflict then arose when the discussion on how to correct this error began, and that discussion is still going on today.”

According to Ferlo, the conflict does not have anything to do with the relationship between OSA and SAC.

“I think when something this important and controversial comes up, disagreements are inevitable,” Ferlo said.

Nathan Koffke, chairman of allocations for SAC, said that OSA and SAC are only connected in a very small way. The only time they interact is when OSA appoints members to SAC and when OSA tells SAC what is to be funded.

“They set the guidelines to be an organization and be a club, they pass that on to us, and we then decide if they can be a club that gets money,” Koffke said. “Then we determine how much we give them.”

Reginald Parson serves as chief of staff to the president and vice president of OSA and he is a member of SAC.

Parson said unfortunately, conflict and disagreement lies in bigger companies, including Fortune 500 companies, institutions of higher learning like UWO and even student government.

“Sometimes conflict and disagreement is a good thing, but there is a fine line that must be walked without putting others at risk,” Parson said.

Parson said in clubs and organizations that serve students like OSA and SAC, there will be a difference in how conflict resolution is done.

“I would rather be involved in organizations that are not in it for the purposes of advancing themselves, but have others interests in mind,” Parson said.

Parson said both organizations share the interest of students.

“Furthermore, we are only allocated a portion of the total segregated fees amount, so we cannot afford to fund everything they [student organizations] would like,” Parson said.

Parson said when student clubs and organizations request more than what SAC is given, the cuts are not always easy, requiring longer debate.

Jordan Schettle, president of OSA, said in order to have equal and fair control over both types of segregated fees, OSA has to establish two committees: the Segregated Fees Committee and the Student Allocations Committee.

“The role I play in this process of distribution of fees is that I hold the ability to appoint student members to both of these committees, a presidential power that is balanced by OSA Assembly and Senate’s approval, and this is the total extent of my oversight power,” Schettle said. “