General Organization Requirements

Student Organization Recognition Board

Organization Good Standing

Registration Process

Renewal Process

Student organizations must comply with the following registration requirements. Organizations are reviewed by the Student Organization Recognition Board to determine classification and category.

1. Name of the organization (Cannot include "GVSU, Grand Valley, Lakers, GV, etc.") unless the name was established prior to Fall 2021.
2. Each group must have an advisor who is a full-time faculty or staff member Grand Valley State University.
3. New organizations may register at any time during the year but must complete the process within 30 days of submitting the request. It is understood that information provided in the registration process will be treated as public information and distributed to the university community as needed. Once an organization is approved by the Student Organization Recognition Board, they must complete their on-boarding before gaining approval on LakerLink and receiving Registered Student Organization benefits. 
4. The Office of Student Life defines an organization as a group of four or more members. Organizations must have four members in order to be approved. A President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary must be designated on LakerLink. 
   1. Groups with less than four members may meet with the Assistant Director of Student Organizations to discuss membership issues. Temporary approval may be granted if a membership plan is established, but membership numbers must reach four within 2 semesters or the organization will be unregistered. Groups with less than four members will have limited privileges determined by the Office of Student Life. Organizations must have a primary contact.
5. Officers for RSO's must be in good academic and judicial standing as well as registered for at least six semester hours of credit at GVSU during their term of office. A staff member in the Office of Student Life will review academic progress each semester. Officers not maintaining a 2.0 cumulative GPA and a minimum of 6 credit hours will forfeit their position upon notification from the Office of Student Life. The organization advisor will also be notified regarding the status of the officer.
6. The officers of RSO's are responsible for familiarizing themselves and all members with all university procedures pertaining to the organization's activities. Each organization shall be responsible for the individual and collective conduct of its members in all of its group-sponsored activities and functions.
7. The Office of Student Life will not recognize organizations with a mission statement that does not reflect the mission of GVSU. A student organization's constitution and bylaws may not be in conflict with the regulations of the university or local, state or federal laws.
8. The Office of Student Life will not recognize organizations that require or encourage international travel as a major piece of their organization's identity.   
9. The Office of Student Life will not recognize organizations that duplicate campus departments and their offerings. 
10. Grand Valley State University is an Antidiscrimination/equal opportunity institution. It encourages diversity and provides equal opportunity in education, employment, all of its programs, and the use of its facilities. It is committed to protecting the constitutional and statutory civil rights of persons connected with the university. Unlawful acts of discrimination or harassment by members of the campus community are prohibited. In addition, even if not illegal, acts are prohibited if they harass or discriminate against any university community member(s) through inappropriate limitation of access to, or participation in, educational, employment, athletic, social, cultural, or other university activities on the basis of age, color, disability, familial status, height, marital status, national origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex/gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, veteran status, or weight. Limitations are lawful if they are: directly related to a legitimate university purpose, required by law, lawfully required by a grant or contract between the university and the state or federal government, or addressing domestic partner benefits.
11. In the event that a request for the establishment of a second organization with a similar mission to that of an existing organization, the Student Organization Recognition Board will review the request and determine if a second organization with a similar mission is needed. Generally, two organizations with the same or similar mission will not be recognized separately (i.e. two volleyball clubs will not be recognized).

All new organizations are required to accomplish the General Organization requirements. However, Club Sports, Fraternities and Sororities, and Honor Societies have additional requirements.

Club Sport Requirements

Fraternity & Sorority Life - Expansion information coming soon! 

Honor Societies must complete all General Requirements

• A GPA expectation of a 3.0 (or higher) as a national organization standard, or a class standing equivalent that averages above a 3.0 GPA (i.e. top 10% of class standing). 
• An official partnership with a GVSU academic department; including a faculty member from the academic department to serve as an organization advisor.  Before approval of the new organization can take place, a letter of endorsement from the Dean of the academic department must be provided to verify this partnership has been established.

*Organizations unable to meet these standards do not qualify to receive the Honors classification, nor will they be permitted to have the word “honors” in the title or description of the organization.

*The organization may still be eligible to become a registered student organization, but will fall under a different classification (academic, service, special interest, etc.). 

*Organizations that receive the Honors classification are permitted once a semester to request students’ information for recruitment purposes through the Office of Student Life.

The Student Organization Recognition Board is a board of staff and students who are charged with reviewing applications for new student organizations and other student organization administrative decisions. The board meets each month during the fall and winter semesters to review applications and make administrative decisions.

The purpose of the Student Organization Recognition Board (SORB) is to:

1. Review student organization registration requests, name change requests, and determine classification status.
2. Support the annual student organization recognition and awards process.

Student Organization Misconduct is reviewed and handled by the Dean of Students Office.

Attendance at meetings is required by board members. A quorum of four SORB members is required to conduct official business. SORB meetings are closed meetings unless approved by the chair in advance.

The Student Organization Recognition Board will consist of the following eight members for Fall 2026:

• Assistant Director of Student Life (Chair): Bri Slager
• Student Senate President or designated Cabinet Member: Lukas Hartley
• Two-four students appointed by the Assistant Director of Student Organizations: Carlie Toering, Lauren Palencik
  • ***Two seats are available, reach out to Bri Slager ([email protected]) to apply.***
• Three professional staff representatives from the Division of Student Affairs: Renee Malkowski, Leah Erben, Ava Spiteri
• One graduate assistant from the Office of Student Life appointed by the Assistant Director of Student Life: Sofi Grover
• One student staff assistant from the Office of Student Life (non-voting): 
   

The Director or an Associate Director of Student Life will act as the SORB Chair if the Assistant Director of Student Life is unable due to absence or conflict of interest.

Schedule Dates

Meeting 1 - September 3

Meeting 2 - October 8

Meeting 3 - November TBA

Keep in mind, you should submit a new organization at least 1 day prior to the meeting date to be considered for review.

Meetings are closed to board members only. If you would like something shared with the board, please email Bri Slager at [email protected].

The review of new student organizations will take place at regularly scheduled Student Organization Review Board (SORB) meetings during the fall and winter semesters. Students submitting organization requests are not expected to attend SORB meetings. All the requirements will be reviewed by SORB. One of the following designations will be given to your organization upon review:

• Approved - full approval status
• Approved Pending - student organization is missing 1-2 items that can be completed; once completed, the group will be switched to approved status
• Deferred - student organization has multiple missing items or lacks meeting numerous requirements; group must remedy these issues & will then be reviewed a second time by SORB
• Denied - student organization does not meet the criteria to be a registered student organization

The status of an organization will be communicated by the Office of Student Life via e-mail to the organization president, advisor, and/or requester of record within 2 business days of the Student Organization Review Board's decision.

Key Status terms and definitions

• Unlinked - Registration requirements were not completed by the re-registration deadline and/or some administrative action is in progress or pending.
• Active - Registration requirements have been successfully completed by the deadline of the re-registration renewal window and fully recognized by the university.
• Inactive - Unlinked organizations that have remained out of compliance for more than one academic year. Inactive organizations must complete student organization on-boarding through the Office of Student Life to become active again. 
• Dissolved - Organizations that have self-terminated, closed as a result of an Office of Student Conduct & Conflict Resolution sanction, or has been inactive for two academic years. These organizations are no longer recognized by the university. If eligible, the dissolved organization may apply as a new student organization.
• Pending Registration - Valid and completed registration is submitted on LakerLink and it has not been approved by the Student Organization Recognition Board AND/OR has not completed the necessary new organization on-boarding process.

Registered Student Organizations (RSO's) must complete the following to remain in good standing with GVSU:

• Attend the bi-annual officer training each semester (Ignite and ReIgnite)
  • Ignite and Re-Ignite are the official training and resource programs for officers and executive boards of student organizations that occur twice a year (Fall and Winter semester). ALL student organizations are REQUIRED to have at least one executive officer participate in both Ignite (Fall) and Re-Ignite (Winter), but are strongly encouraged to have all 4 officers participate in the training. Policies and procedures, funding, LakerLink, and other important details pertinent to student organizations are covered at this event.
• Complete the bi-annual registration on LakerLink
  • Every Registered Student Organization is required to renew their organization for each Fall and Winter semester with updated information and Executive Board positions. If you do not renew your organization you may lose the privileges associated with being an RSO including funding, room reservations, and hosting events.

Comply with all University policies outlined in the Anchor: Student Code of Conduct and University policies; including the University’s Political Activity Policy, as well as all applicable Office of Student Life policies.

The registration and renewal process for student organizations is conducted online via LakerLink. Detailed instructions and information about the registration process is available on the Student Organization Support page. The president of the organization is responsible for registering the organization and must provide the following information at the time of registration:

• Name of the organization (Cannot include "GVSU, Grand Valley, Lakers, GV, etc.")
• Organization statement of purpose and description.
• Name of campus advisor, e-mail address of the advisor
• Names and e-mail addresses of the officers of the organization
• Self-select the general category type for the organization to classify the type of organization (final organization classification will be determined by the Student Organization Recognition Board).
• The constitution of the organization and membership selection criteria.

The organization constitution clarifies the operating procedures for student organizations and their officers. Students in leadership positions are responsible for knowing and abiding by various university policies and regulations. Personal information will be submitted from the members, the officers, and the advisor at the time of registration. Information provided will be accessible by staff administrators. Once an organization is approved by the Student Organization Recognition Board, they must complete their on-boarding before gaining approval on LakerLink and receiving Registered Student Organization benefits. 

NOTE: Organizations that have not been registered in the past may register at any time during the regular academic year, but must complete the registration process in its entirety within 30 days of submitting the request.

Every organization must renew at the beginning of each academic semester (Fall and Winter). This allows organizations to update rosters and officer information. This process is completed online via LakerLink.

Each group must complete the required renewal process on LakerLink by the deadline date established for each academic semester. It is recommended that organizations complete the renewal process as early as possible. Failure to renew by the deadline will result in loss of recognition and the loss of student organization privileges. Organizations that have failed to renew and have lost their RSO status will not be eligible to re-apply as an organization until the fall semester of the following academic year. Any organization that loses its registered status must be reviewed by the Student Organization Recognition Board prior to their return to campus.