It starts with a void and a dream.

Two years ago, when Hilary Braseth came to Marquette, she wanted to continue singing like she had in high school. After realizing Marquette only had large choirs and none of the close-knit singing groups she preferred, Braseth, a junior in the College of Arts & Sciences, and friend Katie Blazek, a junior in the College of Nursing, created one.

Their creation was Gold ’N Blues, a 14-member co-ed a cappella group that Braseth said enjoys singing contemporary music to make others smile. She said it’s the kind of entertainment everyone enjoys.

Braseth’s story is similar to the founders of many of Marquette’s student organizations. These individuals felt something was missing at Marquette and they wanted to fill that void.

At Organization Fest today, more than 250 of Marquette’s student organizations will take over Central Mall, allowing students to find their niche on campus.

Getting organized

Braseth said the guidelines for starting an organization were easy to understand, but the process took most of the semester.

“Everyone at OSD was extremely supportive,” she said.

A prospective organization must include five or more students and submit a Request to Organize form to the Office of Student Development.

Braseth said she started gathering support for her group during the spring 2008 semester by passing out flyers before Marquette Chorus rehearsals.

The budding a cappella group held rehearsals in the basement of McCormick Hall because organizations cannot reserve space on campus until they are approved, Braseth said.

Once preliminary approval is granted for an organization, the group may reserve space to hold three meetings in order to recruit others and write a constitution, said Kate Trevey, coordinator for student organizations and leadership for the Office of Student Development.

The constitution — which outlines the purpose of the group, membership, meetings, and how officers are chosen — must then be submitted to OSD for approval, according to the Student Organization Handbook.

Next, OSD recommends groups submit the name of an adviser for the organization.

The organization founders must then meet with an OSD staff member to discuss the organization’s policies and procedures.

Some groups, like Gold ’N Blues, need to get special approval from related campus departments and organizations as well as approval by Marquette Student Government and OSD. The process took a while for Gold ’N Blues because OSD also had to consult with the leaders of Marquette’s music program, Braseth said.

Club and recreational sports need written approval from Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreational Sports, while spiritual and religious groups need approval from Campus Ministry, according to the Request to Organize form. Social fraternities and sororities need approval from their respective Greek governing councils.

Groups traveling internationally also need special approval, Trevey said.

It is possible for an organization to be denied legitimization, but Trevey said this seldom happens. Prospective organizations usually stop the process themselves before they’re denied, she said.

If an organization would contradict the mission and values of the university or pose safety threats to students it could also be denied approval, she said.

Dealing out the dollars

Once an organization has been formed, its leaders usually apply for funding.

Gold ’N Blues had not previously applied for funding but will try to apply this year, now that the group is more stable, Braseth said.

Funding for organizations’ events can be granted by MUSG’s Student Organizations Allocations Committee, said MUSG Financial Vice President Jonathan Giel.

An organization’s leaders can request funding by filling out a form found on MUSG’s Web site that describes the event and its expenses.

“A lot of the information on the form is something the organization should have already thought about when planning the event,” said Giel, a senior in the College of Business Administration.

The way organizations ask MUSG for funding depends on their type. Non-club sports organizations have to ask for money for specific events while club sports request money for an entire season at a time, Giel said.

During the current 2010 fiscal year the SOA Committee will allocate $104,200 for non-club sports organizations and $59,000 to club sports, according to the MUSG budget.

The average allocation per non-club sports organization is $1,633 and $2,412 per club sport, according to data provided by Giel.

Club sports receive more money on average than other organizations because many club sport events are off campus and include travel costs, Giel said.

When considering whether to allocate money for a non-club sports event, Giel said the SOA Committee looks at whether the event is on campus, if it is open to all undergraduates, how much money the organization plans to put towards the event and the expected number of participants.

There are seven deadlines for requesting money for non-club sports organizations, the soonest being Sept. 11 at 5 p.m. There are two deadlines for club sports, the fall season deadline having already passed, according to the MUSG Web site.

Every Friday before a deadline, MUSG holds workshops to walk students through the funding process, Giel said.

However, there are a few restrictions on requesting funding from MUSG.

Organizations can only ask for funding three times a year and cannot ask for funding for the same event twice, Giel said.

New kids on the Mall

Although there are only five organizations new to O-Fest this year, they add to its variety significantly.

These up and coming groups are: Linguistics Club, Omega Delta Fraternity, Women’s Club Basketball, Native American Student Association and Polish Club.

Linguistics Club is for those who like to discuss language and the study of language in a fun and informal way, said Brad Rentz, the group’s chancellor.

Linguistics Club was founded in December 2008 and was the new student organization of the year for the 2008-’09 school year, Trevey said.

“It’s our hope to persuade the university to start a linguistics minor and hopefully a major down the line,” Rentz said.

Coming up on its first anniversary, Omega Delta is a social fraternity with an emphasis on professionalism and multiculturalism, said Omega Delta President Jon Viard.

“There’s no other group that has the brotherhood, community service emphasis and embracing of all cultures,” he said.

Another group that embraces a unique culture on campus is the Native American Student Association.

Although Marquette shows a Native American guiding founder Pere Jacques Marquette in the school seal and the university is located in an area rich in Native American history, Marquette didn’t have an organization celebrating Native American culture until the association was founded in April 2009, said co-founder Alana Wauneka.

The purpose of the group is to educate Marquette students and Milwaukeeans about Native American culture by hosting movies, cooking demonstrations and speakers, she said.

Wauneka said students don’t have to be Native American to join the group.

“We’re here and we’re willing to share our culture with you,” she said.

Also new to O-Fest is Women’s Club Basketball. Even though the team has only been around since last spring, they’ve already won a tournament, said Kat Grasse, club president.

This year, Grasse said the club might have a second team if enough women try out and hopes to have a tournament at Marquette in November.

Despite the diversity of Marquette’s new organizations, if there’s something that interests a student that Marquette doesn’t already foster, Braseth recommends starting a new organization based around that interest.

If one person is interested in something, chances are good others are as well, she said.