We at the Student Defense League wanted to update you on our status as we work toward becoming fully operational.

Earlier this summer, we received the certified copy of our Articles of Incorporation. We are now officially a nonprofit public benefit corporation under California law.

On Saturday, August 10, 2013, the Student Defense Initiative held its first Board of Directors meeting, where we passed our bylaws (which are now posted on our website). We also discussed our next steps toward cementing our nonprofit status. At the top of our list is achieving 501(c)(3) status from the IRS, which will allow us to register with the State of California and begin formally accepting donations. A long process stretches ahead of us, and we will keep you updated as we make progress.

Please welcome the first Board of Directors:

Jason Cerundolo (Blacker/Ricketts ‘09), President
John Hasier (Blacker/Ricketts ‘09), Vice President
Ashley Potts (Dabney ‘09), Secretary
Michelle Hasier, Librarian
Jimmy Kuo (Lloyd ‘82), Director at Large
Andrew Hsieh (Blacker/Dabney ‘04), Director at Large

We are still looking for a strong candidate to fill the position of Treasurer. The Treasurer is responsible for accounting for all SDI revenues and expenses and for ensuring that all necessary tax forms are filed on time. We also hope to broaden the perspective of our Board by incorporating representatives of different houses from different years. Ensuring diverse representation is crucial to SDI’s mission of supporting undergraduate student culture. If you’d like to volunteer or if you have any suggestions, please email jason@studentdefenseinitiative.org.