The Student Fee Advisory Board (SFAB) is the primary way by which students can get their thoughts and concerns about fees heard.

The Student Fee Advisory Board makes a formal recommendation to approve or amend each mandatory fee, and will base this recommendation in part on your responses to the survey. Please follow the links on this page under the heading ‘Mandatory Fee Changes’ to review proposed fee increases for Academic Year 2017-2018 and provide your feedback about the fees and the activities they support.

It is the policy of the USM Board of Regents that each USM campus forms its own advisory committee involved in the processes of setting student fees and is comprised of appropriate numbers of students and stakeholders (Section VII; 2.50: 5 of BoR Bylaws).

The Student Fee Advisory Board (SFAB) at UMBC is a team of students (undergraduate and graduate) who represent student interests in the annual mandatory fee review process. After hearing presentations from administrators representing the departments who own the six mandatory student fees, SFAB conducts outreach to determine what recommendations students have with respect to the size and specifics of those planned expenditures. SFAB is comprised of seven members, each member serves as a liaison to a different demographic of students.

• Resident Students
• Commuter Students
• Undergraduate Students
• Graduate Students
• Student Athletes
• Out of state students

If you already take steps to manage your finances, you’re almost done.

Just make a post about a tool or process that you use to help you manage your finances on any form of social media, including myUMBC, and then send a screenshot of the post to financialsmartsawards@gmail.com. If you post a video, then send the video file.

That’s it! Your entry will then be in the running for a $500 first-place prize, or a $250 second-place prize.

Prizes are deposited into your Red Card, which you can use for tuition and fees, or other stuff like food, printing, or merchandise from the bookstore.

Entries are due by March 1^st, 2018.

To learn more about financial literacy, visit financialsmarts.umbc.edu. If you have any questions, please contact Isabel Garrido at garrido@umbc.edu.

Have extra meals on your red card that you aren’t able to use? Students on a meal plan can now “save a swipe” to donate up to one meal a week to a shared pool. Those meals will be distributed to students in need through Counseling Services to be used in True Grit’s. 225 Block meal plans will have 16 meals deducted when you sign up. Recurring meals per week (Flexible 10, 14, Terrific 12, Savvy 16) will have one meal deducted each week. Ultimate Meal Plan holders will be donating their Friday lunch meal, students on the Ultimate will not be able to use a meal from 11:00 am - 4:00pm on Friday. Ultimate plan holders can still use their flex, retriever dollars or food funds. These meals are non-revocable once submitted. You may sign up during the beginning of the semester until the drop/add date (February 9th for Spring 2018).

Volunteer Income Tax Assistance at UMBC

Did you earn less than $54,000 in 2017? If you did, why waste your money on paid tax preparers when you can get your taxes done for free by IRS-trained and certified volunteers from VITA@UMBC?  Make an appointment at bmorefreetaxes.org or by calling 410-234-8008.  Just ask to be scheduled with UMBC and you’ll meet with UMBC volunteers at the Apartment Community Center across from Walker Garage. 

Please pass the word to anyone who may need this assistance.

Questions?  Contact us at VITA@umbc.edu