Club Accounting

Please contact StudentActivities@johnson.cornell.edu with any accounting questions, or stop by 107 Sage Hall.

  • GPSAFC FUNDS | UNIVERSITY (IT) & INDEPENDENT (EO) ORGANIZATIONS: When using GPSAFC funds, you must follow GPSAFC Funding Guidelines. Login to CORNELL CampusGroups to submit GPSAFC payment requests under the MONEY tab for your group.
  • VENDOR CONTRACTS | UNIVERSITY (IT) ORGANIZATIONS: Vendor contracts must be reviewed in advance by the Johnson School Student Activities & Special Events Office and signed by Cornell Purchasing. Please allow at least fifteen (15) business days for this process. INDEPENDENT (EO) CLUBS: Vendor contracts are signed by club officers and are the responsibility of the club and must be backed by club external checking or PayPal accounts.
  • PAYPAL ACCOUNTS | UNIVERSITY (IT) ORGANIZATIONS will use the Johnson School PayPal account to accept dues and event payments in JOHNSON CampusGroups, with funds going into the operating account for each group. INDEPENDENT (EO) ORGANIZATIONS ONLY: PayPal - Independent clubs generally set-up PayPal accounts as a small business. If you have a PayPal account that you would like to use to accept payments in JOHNSON CampusGroups, please email the account name to StudentActivities@johnson.cornell.edu.
  • OPERATING ACOUNTS | UNIVERSITY (IT) ORGANIZATIONS: For any expenditures to be paid from university accounts (IT Operating Accounts, corporate sponsorship, Johnson department sponsorship, and/or Student Budget Committee), you must contact the Student Activities & Special Events Office StudentActivities@johnson.cornell.edu in 107 Sage Hall WELL IN ADVANCE of the expense being incurred or committed to, so that they can work with you to determine the best way to facilitate the transaction. In many cases, the item can be charged directly to a university procurement card or billed directly to the school. We will make every attempt to avoid having students expend personal funds, if we are notified in advance of the expenditure. It can take 15 business days or more to set-up payment, especially to new vendors.
  • ALCOHOL | if using any funds that reside in university accounts (IT Operating Accounts, GPSAFC, SBC, Title-Town, Department sponsorship, etc.) to pay for alcohol, it must either be served by a licensed and insured caterer, or served at a licensed facility (restaurant/bar).
  • SWAG: Cornell/Johnson Name or Logo on T-Shirts, Pens, etc. | If you wish to produce any promotional items with the Cornell/Johnson name and/or logo, you must use a vendor licensed to produce Cornell merchandise, and complete an approval form. Cornell details and the approval form can be found on this page. You'll also want to be sure to be in compliance with Johnson Brand Guidelines.
  • TAX EXEMPT STATUS | UNIVERSITY (IT) ORGANIZATIONS can make tax exempt purchases, as their funds are in Johnson School operating accounts. INDEPENDENT (EO) ORGANIZATIONS are NOT tax exempt and cannot use the university's NY State Sales Tax Exemption number for any expenses being paid from club checking accounts, nor from GPSAFC funds.
  • EXTERNAL ACCOUNT ACCESS | INDEPENDENT (EO) ORGANIZATIONS: The MBA club Treasurer and President should both have signature authority on the checking account, as well as access to any online banking, PayPal accounts, etc. New officers should login to accounts upon transition, to update security requirements and change passwords.
  • EXTERNAL BANK ACCOUNTS | INDEPENDENT (EO) ORGANIZATIONS ONLY: All MBA club checking accounts with local banks must have a unique, permanent federal ID number associated with them. (Clubs CANNOT use the university's federal ID number.) It is important that you use this number, and not the social security number of a club officer. If you do not have record of your club's number, email Student Activities at StudentActivities@johnson.cornell.edu.
  • EXTERNAL CHECKING ACCOUNTS | INDEPENDENT (EO) ORGANIZATIONS: When setting up checking accounts with local banks, MBA clubs should use "JOHNSON" in the title, i.e., "JOHNSON Squash Club," "JOHNSON Wine Club," etc. The address on your account should read "JOHNSON Club Name, 107 Sage Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853-6201."
  • REFUND POLICIES | All MBA club boards should establish a refund policy for dues and event registration payments, and clearly communicate the policies in JOHNSON CampusGroups.