Student Learning Fees

Allocating SLF (unit-level guidelines)

Unit-level funding is determined each fall and Student Learning Fee (SLF) award allocations are made during July of the following fiscal year. Unit-level committees work with their unit heads (college deans or Vice President for Student Affairs) to determine how to allocate SLF dollars for the following fiscal year. The Campus Fee Advisory Committee (CFAC) recommends allocation of awards for non-college Academic Affairs’ units (e.g., Meriam Library, Undergraduate Education) and for cross-college and cross-divisional awards.

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  • Forming Unit-level Committees

    Each fall, the Provost’s Office issues a call for nominations for faculty, student, and staff Unit-level committee members. Self-nominations are permitted, and nomination forms (PDF) should be submitted to college offices (or Student Affairs Office) by the 2nd Friday/October at 5pm.

    Each committee is required to have a student voting majority with broad representation from within the unit. The unit head (college dean or Vice President for Student Affairs) or designee is a non-voting ex officio member of the committee responsible for organizing and conducting meetings of the committee as needed. The committee is to have a minimum of five voting members, with a minimum of seven (total) members as follows:

    Non-Voting Members
    • Unit head or designee
    • Student Senator (academic colleges only)
    • AS President or designee (Student Affairs only)

    Voting Members
    • One (1) lower division student (freshman or sophomore)
    • Two (2) upper division, post-baccalaureate, or graduate students (junior, senior, or graduate)
    • Two (2) faculty and/or staff members


    Larger committee configurations may be proposed as long as a student voting majority is maintained. Where possible, voting members should come from different areas within the unit. Each unit should develop a system to select faculty, staff, and student committee members from among the nominees. Each unit is responsible for informing their nominees whether or not they were selected as committee members at least two weeks before the first meeting. The meeting schedule shall be created based on the availability of the selected committee members, including the students. The unit head (or designee), and the Student Senator or AS President (or designee), recommend the unit’s committee membership to CFAC. The Campus Fee Advisory Committee (CFAC) then approves committee rosters and any proposed alternative configurations.

    Appointments to Unit-level committees are for one academic year with the possibility of reappointment. Faculty, staff, and students are to serve on the committees no more than three consecutive terms. Student members must be in good academic standing (not on academic probation). Committee members who resign or are otherwise unable or unwilling to fully participate may be replaced from the pool of nominees selected by the unit head or representative.

  • Proposal Process Review

    Unit-level committees are responsible for soliciting, collecting, reviewing, and ranking proposals for Student Learning Fees. Normally, the committees begin work each fall by reviewing the recommendations, awards, and assessments from the preceding spring. The committees are responsible for sending a request for proposals to their respective area and determining the deadlines for the review and approval process.

    Unit-level committees must review all proposals/requests for funding to make a fully informed decision. Units may provide matching funds for proposals at their discretion. Units should consider budget requirements (under Requesting SLF) when reviewing proposals.

    Committees can request clarification of proposals or presentations from submitters as desired. Committees are charged with ensuring the student voice is prominent in the process of recommending proposals for funding in rank order, with justifications for the rankings.

    CFAC is responsible for review and ranking of proposals from non-college Academic Affairs’ units and cross-college and cross-divisional proposals. CFAC has final approval authority for these recommendations.

  • Expenditure Plans and Unit Allocations

    Unit heads (or designees), in consultation with the Student Senator or AS President (or designee), have final approval authority for the unit’s SLF recommendations. If the committee disagrees with the final approved expenditure plan, every effort should be made to settle the matter within the unit. If that process does not meet with satisfactory results, the committee may appeal to CFAC for further review.

    Units may use SLF funds to support strategic investments by designating up to 10% of their current-year SLF allocation for planned carry-forward for a specific proposal. Carry-forward for a given proposal may extend for up to three-years. For instance, carry-forward of $10,000 each from 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 could then be combined with $10,000 from 2021-2022 funding for a $30,000 expenditure in 2021-2022.

    Any unspent funds above the 10% for planned rollovers are returned to the campus fee pool for reallocation the following year. Aside from approved planned rollovers, encumbrances at fiscal year-end are not allowed. Every effort must be made to follow the proposed budget in the year that funds are originally allocated. Planned rollovers will be monitored closely and units will be required to report on any unspent allocation each year-end.

    The unit head or designee will complete an Expenditure Plan of proposals to be funded and send it to slf@csuchico.edu for review. The CFAC will review the report to ensure all planned expenditures are within SLF guidelines; units will be notified if proposed awards need to be modified or rejected and Expenditure Plans can be adjusted accordingly. 


    Following final approval by the Provost, allocations will be made by the campus Budget Office in July.