Financial Responsibilities

Please note! The Business Office has established the Off-Campus Trips & Trips & Tours Policy on the financial documentation that must be provided and procedures that must be followed to meet university financial standards and accountability for Off-Campus Trips & Tours.  

There will be a financial impact for any travel experience so student group travel needs to be included in the annual budgeting process. Depending on the travel experience, the anticipated expenses and income for a trip should be noted in an existing organization account – or in a separate travel budget account.

Budgets for stand alone travel experiences must be self-sustaining. The cost of these trips must be covered without the use of general institutional budget support. Trip expenses can be covered by student fees, fundraising, or special gifts. If enough funds are not available and additional revenue is needed, it cannot be assumed the University or a campus organization will cover the cost for an individual or group travel experience that goes over budget. Therefore, all revenue needs to be in place and available prior to trip departure. Any exceptions to this must be arranged directly with the Business office.

It is the trip leader’s responsibility to keep track of account balances (with deposits and expenses) to make sure the trip is on budget. There may be two types of accounts created depending on funds collected, fundraising done, or gifts received so communicate with the Business office on what type of FOAPAL or gift accounts are needed and where funds are to be deposited. Let the Business office know once the trip is completed and all expenses have cleared.

An anticipated trip budget will need to be noted in two places. First, on the Proposed Trip Application submitted to campus for trip approval, and then in BudgetPak. Please work with the Business Office directly regarding the annual BudgetPak process.

(Please note – It is important to have all travel budgets included in BudgetPak as they can affect quarterly and annual reporting to the campus Board and campus Auditors. Even though a trip budget must be self-funded, the individual expenses (such as ground costs, group flights, etc.) can impact the overall University financials when looking at each expense category on the financials.)

Leader expenses: Determine how leader costs will be covered – for example – including a leader’s costs in the student fees, a leader paying their own way, seeking special gifts to cover the cost, fundraising along with students, etc.

Personal financial obligations: Communicate with participants from the very beginning of trip promotion on their personal and financial obligations once they commit to a trip. Be sure and communicate payment deadlines, non-refundable costs, and the responsibility for a participant to cover any trip costs (airfare and other pre-purchased travel expenses) if they drop out of a trip.

Contracts: Any experience which requires a signed contract stipulating financial obligations for Concordia to pay another entity or organization for services must be approved by and contract signed by Concordia’s CFO. Any contracts should be sent to the campus General Counsel and CFO for review – contracts will then be signed by the CFO.

Financial Resources

Trip financial planning: Leaders can use this Trip Funding Worksheet to help plan out the expense and revenue sources and then adding these details to the Proposed Trip Application.

Deposit form: Trip leaders need to use this Trip Deposit Form to record funds received from participants (and/or fundraising) to then bring with the funds to the Business office for processing.

Credit card charge receipt: Participants can now make trip deposits or payments with a personal credit card. Trip leaders can print off copies of this Credit Card Charge Receipt to send with a student to the Business Office. The student then brings the receipt back to the trip leader to keep track of the payment. There is 3% per $1 fee for all payments charged. This amount could be covered by contingency fees included in a trip cost.

Fundraising: Any anticipated on-campus or off-campus fundraising needs to be approved by the Institutional Advancement Office. This office can make sure the same individuals or businesses are not being approached by multiple Concordia groups for support. See the Fundraising Guidelines section in the Off-Campus Activity and Travel Guide for more details.  

Other funding sources: Check with the Director of Global Opportunities to see if your trip fits the parameters for special funding available for individuals through these resources:

• Acts 1:8 Students in Mission Fund … students can apply for grants for Gospel focused mission trips.
• Romans 1:16 Endowment … faculty can apply for funds for their travel expenses if they are leading students on a Gospel focused mission trip.
• Fiala Asian Studies Fund … students can apply for grants for immersive study experiences in Asian countries.
• Luke Scholars … Luke Scholar students can request a one time stipend for a trip experience.