By Nico Patakidis

During an Associated Students (A.S.) meeting on Sept. 5, information about increase in enrollment and discussion of proposed A.S. grants for the 2025-26 academic year were introduced. 

Dr. Chrissy Holiday, Vice President of Enrollment Management & Student Success, shared at the meeting that student enrollment at Cal Poly Humboldt has increased by 4% this fall semester. Enrollment has been increasing each fall semester since 2022, the same year the university became a Cal Poly, with this fall being the largest growth so far. Holiday said that the growth of the student population will also increase the A.S. budget for funding programs and services. 

Nate Heron, the Administration and Finance Vice President, proposed three new A.S.  grants at the Sept. 5 meeting. With $45,000 available to fund grants, $20,000 was dedicated to on-campus grants and $25,000 dedicated to off-campus grants. 

The on-campus grant, Starting Initiatives, is designed to support individual students or groups that aim to take action around campus to support students’ basic needs. However, the movement was not passed as board members discussed that the grant description of ‘basic needs’ was too broad. The movement was postponed until it could be refined further and looked over by the finance committee. 

The proposed off-campus grants are for students that are looking to travel in order to benefit their associated registered student organization (RSO). The proposed travel grant would cover costs such as lodging and flights. The second proposed off-campus grant is the Professional Development Grant. This grant covers the costs required to attend conferences or competition entrance fees, though it would not cover any fees related to travel. Both off-campus grants are required to benefit an RSO the applicant is a part of. 

An increase in student enrollment allows for a larger A.S. budget that can be used to fund these grants. As grants continue to be proposed, revised and approved, students will have more opportunities to further their education, benefit their RSO and bring change to Cal Poly Humboldt’s campus. While the off-campus and on-campus grants were not passed during this A.S. meeting, a motion was passed that the grants will be revised and revisited in the next A.S. meeting on Sept. 19.

Nico is a sophomore journalism major with an interest in covering local government and political affairs. In his free time he enjoys hanging out and can be reached at np211@humboldt.edu.