Spending policies are reviewed twice a month bythe comptrollers, and only the comptrollers andthe treasurer have check-writing powers, Sun said.

The Harvard Band is unusual because it has afull-time faculty advisor, said Band Manager GrantM. Dixton '96.

Both Dixton and the band's treasurer haveaccess to all the records, Dixton said, and everycheck must be double-signed.

"We makes Dean Epps' job easy," Dixton said."If there were ever a problem, it almostdefinitely would be caught internally."

Two of Harvard's largest student organizationshave administrative or professional checks builtin.

"We have someone on staff full-time who isbasically a bookkeeper, because of the amount ofmoney we have coming in and out every day," saidAndrew J. Ehrlich '96, treasurer of PBHA, whichhas an annual gross revenue of $1.5 million.

"It would be absolutely impossible to embezzle$10,000," Ehrlich said. All checks must becosigned by two of three people, according toEhrlich, and the organization is audited by anindependent corporation every year because of itsnonprofit status.

HSA is also unusually stringent with itsfinancial safeguards.

The organization has an adult controller andtwo assistant managers, President Larry W. Cheng'96 said.

Richard M. Olken '67, HSA's general manager,who is a University officer, said that Jewett andDean of Admissions and Financial Aid William R.Fitzsimmons '67 are on HSA's board of directors,which meets each month.

"The idea of our audit...our oversight, is tomake sure that people don't have to focus on thoseitems as much as on doing their job," Olken said.

But PBHA and HSA finances are remarkablywell-structured in comparison to other campusgroups.

Olken said he is "sometimes shocked" to hearthat other organizations don't have similarcontrols.

Some of the leaders interviewed said they don'thave enough money to worry about misuse.

"It would be pretty hard to embezzle money,"said Jessie K. Liu '95, former treasurer of theHarvard Advocate. "We don't have thatmuch."