[1318] in Discussion of MIT-community interests
Outside Accounts
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Josiah D. Seale)
Fri May 3 14:33:52 2002
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Message-ID: <BLEJJJDGNEIJGAGOJNHNGEMADPAA.siah@media.mit.edu>
Date: Fri, 3 May 2002 11:50:49 -0400
From: "Josiah D. Seale" <siah@MEDIA.MIT.EDU>
To: MIT-Talk@MIT.EDU
This whole outside accounts thing is a big headache. Ever since I started
(which I officially haven't - I'm being sworn in on Monday) I've been
preaching the same message, and I'll preach it until the cows come home or
it's heard, whichever happens first.
I spoke with the guy from the Treasurer's office yesterday, as well as
Larry Benedict. I'll include a little bit of my sermon here. I told him that
MIT students are intelligent, rational human beings who usually share
similar or identical goals to those of faculty and the administration. In
most cases, the only question is how to best achieve these goals. We like
MIT. We think it's a good place. We don't want people taking money from us
illegitimately. We agree that it's good for MIT to have a credible business
reputation. We agree that student life, academic and financial goals all
have to be balanced to maximize the Institute's overall efficiency.
While we often share the same goals, there are many ways of achieving them.
It is up to the community of Faculty, Students and Administration to
together select the route that best accomplishes these goals while
minimizing the academic, financial and student life costs.
Communication is a very key issue in all of this and is my primary goal for
this upcoming year. I have attached a list that the treasurer's office gave
us. It's the list of things that we told them that we wanted them to do. If
you have more issues you want addressed by all means let me know and I'll
make them known to the powers that be.
I also met with Larry Benedict yesterday. I told him that MIT had switched
to outside accounts because they had not been providing quality service with
the internal accounts. He agreed that the onus is on the administration
(treasurer's office) to provide a quality service before mandating a switch
of accounts.
The dates for the switch are still up in the air. I told the treasurer's
office that I wanted fixed deadlines for everything on that list. While we
don't want anyone embezzling money from our accounts any more than they do,
there are many ways of assuring this. While the Tech article may make it
seem that things are set in stone, they are not. We will see how things go.
Again, if you have more needs than the ones on the list, let me know.
Later,
+>Josiah S. (Green 5)
1. Improve on-line account access
- Possibly web based
- Simplified reporting
- Accessibility of statements
2. Declining balance debt card (Fleet bank option) - help with emergency
checks
3. The potential of earning interest on internal accounts
4. Advance checks (petty cash availability) students will turn receipts in
after event
5. Business hours
- 9-5pm during weekday and possible Saturday hours
- Off hours repository for deposits or check requests
6. Locations
- Burton Connor not easily accessible
- W20-549 difficult for graduate students
7. Cashier's Office
- Hours of operation
- Deposits should be made in same place as check requests
- Coin deposits
8. Review turn around time for check requests
9. Review turn around of updated financial signatory list
10. Mailing of reimbursement checks to on campus and off campus locations
11. Simplify paperwork required for reimbursement
12. Annual contract signed by student organization and Student Activities
Office detailing services provided and organization responsibility.
13. Set training workshops every month same time, same place for education
14. Potential of electronic transfer of reimbursement to student designated
account
15. Utilization of MIT's tax exempt certificates
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Owen Ozier [mailto:owenozier@yahoo.com]
> Sent: Friday, May 03, 2002 10:35 AM
> To: jdseale@mit.edu
> Cc: jsheffi@mit.edu; jrubin@mit.edu
> Subject: Josiah - Outside Bank Accounts / Jon Sheffi
>
>
> Josiah -
>
> I was on Green Team with you awhile back, perhaps you remember
> me. I think I last bumped into you in the hall during your
> campaign - congratulations!
>
> I'm writing because I bumped into Jon Sheffi, and he suggested
> I email you. I'm a part of ESP, the Educational Studies
> Program. We're a student group that depends critically on the
> functionality of an outside bank account. We do frequent
> reimbursements, deposits on the weekend, and checks directly to
> vendors. None of these is practically possible with MIT's
> account system.
>
> ESP is not the only group that stands to lose: 60 groups have
> outside accounts. Technique and The Tech also stand out as
> groups that depend on fast, functional bank accounts. There
> has been occasional embezzlement from accounts, but in ESP's
> view, the benefits far outweigh the costs.
>
> So I write to you:
>
> I have watched over the last five years as MIT has picked away
> at student freedoms and responsibility. Real learning comes
> from handling responsibility - and MIT is taking that learning
> away. They consulted no student leaders, they appointed no
> committee. I'm tired of MIT making the most important
> decisions without any inclusiveness of students whatsoever.
> MIT students elected a leader, and it wasn't Charles Vest or
> Allen Bufferd.
>
> It was you.
>
> I'm asking for your help.
>
> What do you say?
>
> - Owen Ozier '98 MEng '99
> (Green 7 under Gold Leader, May 1999)
>
> __________________________________________________
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> Yahoo! Health - your guide to health and wellness
> http://health.yahoo.com
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