The leaders of the largest Black, Asian, Native American and Latino organizations on campus were divided in their reactions to a new system of funding for multicultural student groups. While some described the process of its creation as fair, others expressed grave concerns about the dialogue leading up to its approval.

Monday night marked the first official meeting of the new Club Sports Council, which was formed after significant budget cuts last semester. The council represents 32 teams and about 900 student athletes.

After a tight budget forced the Student Assembly  to deny several student organizations’ requests for increased funding, the S.A. cut its own budget by 10.2 percent. The decision will allow the S.A. to alleviate some of the funding shortfall other organizations face for the next year.

The Student Assembly voted to reject the Cornell Asian Pacific Islander Student Union’s appeal for byline funding Thursday in the face of accusations from CAPSU members that doing so amounts to a dismissal of minority groups’ concerns.

Cornell Cinema applied for and did not receive an increase of $1.50 per student in byline funding from the Student Assembly Appropriations Committee for 2012-2013, the S.A. announced Tuesday.

The same semester it nearly halved the funding cap for student groups, the budget for the Student Assembly Finance Commission budget rose by four percent. Thirty-five percent of the SAFC’s budget was used for catered food — an expenditure prohibited by the SAFC’s requirements for the student organizations that it funds.

Liana Passantino '11, a former staff member of WVBR, argues that the Student Assembly was wrong to grant byline funding to Slope Media Group.

Several students spoke against Slope Media Group’s approval for byline funding at a Student Assembly meeting Thursday.

Student organizations requested a total of 25 percent more funding for 2012-2014 from the Student Assembly Appropriations Committee than was allocated for 2010-2012.

Representatives debate to require all or only by-line funded student organizations to submit sustainability report.