The Undergraduate Council and the College Dean's Office announced this morning the creation of a new Student Life Fund of nearly $75,000 for grants to student organizations for domestic travel and to House Committees for house formals.

UC President Matthew L. Sundquist '09 and Dean of the College Evelynn M. Hammonds will hold office hours today in Lamont Café between 5 and 6:15 p.m.

With the new grants, undergraduate student organizations will now have access to over $745,000 in funding for this academic year.

"Student groups have continually voiced a need to have funding for travel," Sundquist said about the funds, which will come from the College Dean's Office. In the past, he said, the UC funded only travel within the Boston area, so students had to fundraise or pay themselves.

As with the UC's usual student group grants, organizations will apply for Student Life grants on the Common Grant Application and then interview with the UC's Finance Committee, which will make a recommendation to theentire UC.

Organizations may also apply for funding beyond travel expenses. The additional funding would come from the UC's grants fund, while money specifically for travel would come from the Student Life Fund.

The UC will give preference to organizations that travel rarely. "We wouldn't see the funds as something that student groups would want to

be counting on as a continual source of support for yearly travel," Sundquist said. "We hope to subsidize unique or special opportunities that arise for student groups."

Besides travel, the new grants will fund house formals. "House formals are one of the few opportunities during the year when the entire house community can get together and do something just as a house," Sundquist said. "We want to make sure all the houses are able to put on the best formal they can."

HoCos are eligible for two grants of up to $1,250 each from the fund--averaging to one formal per semester. HoCos have been paying for the formals from their budget, which includes approximately $9,000 in yearly funding from the UC, in addition to occasional money from Houses. Money from the Student Life Fund may be used for alcohol for house formals if HoCos use an age-verification procedure such as a Beverage Authorization Team.