Steps for Requesting Club Travel

Student travel beyond 100-mile radius from College of Western Idaho (CWI) is required to be submitted through a Club Travel Request Form through the Office of Student Engagement for approval. All travel requests must be requested at least two (2) months before the first day of the month travel will occur. It is recommended for clubs to submit a request as early as possible to secure any price deals or limits.

Pre-Approval Steps

  1. Meet with the Office of Student Engagement
    Recognized clubs interested in traveling are required to schedule a meeting to receive guidance around club travel policies, procedures, and next steps. All club officers are highly encouraged to attend, however, at a minimum one (1) club officer and the club advisor(s) are required to be in attendance. To schedule a meeting, please email clubs@cwi.edu. 
     
  2. Complete Club Travel Assessment
    All clubs requesting to travel are required to complete the Club Travel Assessment hosted within Canvas. This assessment must be completed by all club officers and advisors on file with the Office of Student Engagement with a passing grade of 80% or higher and prior to submitting a Club Travel Request Form.
     
  3. Create a Travel Budget
    Clubs are responsible for putting together initial estimates and documentation for quotes to include in their request for travel. The following is a list of potential travel expenses to consider while preparing a travel budget and request:
  • Admission & Registration: If club travel involves attending a conference, competition, or exhibitions, it is recommended club leaders look at discounted pricing. Students, teachers, or even group rates can provide lower rates than general or individually based rates.
  • Airfare: When looking at airlines, do not pick the cheapest ones for your estimate as those will likely not be available at the time of booking. We highly recommend pulling an estimate for flights in the mid-range price.
  • Ground Transportation: When considering transportation throughout travel, clubs should take into consideration the ins and outs of transportation costs. These may include, but are not limited to, mileage for the use of CWI vans, vehicle rental costs, toll fees, parking fees, and cab/shuttle fares. To calculate mileage costs for the use of CWI vans, take the total combined miles and multiply it by 0.2 to retrieve the estimated cost.
  • Lodging: Clubs should provide their top two (2) to three (3)  options for hotel preferences. Depending on availability, hotels will be selected based on preference and price. If the travel is in relation to conferences or competitions, there may be room blocks available to reserve at a reduced rate. This should be the hotel used for building your budget.
  • Per Diem: Per diem is the allowance for meals and incidentals expenses.
    • Advisor Per Diem: Advisors must be provided with the full per diem amount. The General Services Administration (GSA) establishes per diem rates for destinations within the lower 48 continental United States. Travel days will only receive 75% of the daily per diem rate.
    • Student Per Diem: No student per diem for club travel will be approved. This is due to the impact student per diem has on student financial aid award packages. Appeals can be made by emailing clubs@cwi.edu.
    • No alcohol may be purchased with any college or club funds, including per diem funds or consumed by any person engaging in student travel while traveling on behalf of the College without prior presidential approval.
  • Contingency: In preparing a budget request for travel, all clubs should include a 10% contingency added to the overall estimated total. Contingencies are a buffer in case there are changes in rates or fares from the time the request is submitted to when travel arrangements are made. 

If clubs would like assistance in research these costs, please contact the Office of Student Engagement at clubs@cwi.edu. 

4. Submit a Travel Request Form

All travel request forms must be completed by a student in a club officer role. Clubs should refer to Canvas for additional guidance pertaining to travel request deadlines. Club should be prepared to show evidence of all travel expenses, how funds were raised, and how the club voted to spend funds. Once submitted, the request will undergo a review process to verify sufficient club funding and travel expense calculations are correctly being reported. If all looks good, the club’s travel request will be submitted to receive overall budget approval.

Club travel requests may require additional approvals if any student at the time of travel is a minor. If there are any minors under 18 years of age participating in student travel, clubs must indicate this and who the minors are in the travel request. The Risk Management Office is required to be notified at least 60 days prior to the start of travel, and requirements of CW-050 Protection of Minors will apply. 

Club Travel Request Form
 

Post Approval Steps

  1. Submit Prior Approval for Student Travel
    Once all paperwork has received budgetary approvals, the Office of Student Engagement will email the club advisor(s) to provide them with the master travel packet and instructions to complete this step. To receive this approval from the dean of students, club advisors are required to fill out and attach the master travel packet to the Prior Approval for Student Travel Form. All approved club travel paperwork must be pre-approved by the dean of students before any arrangements are made/purchased.
     
  2. Complete Student Travel Waiver & Release Form
    All students and employees participating in club travel will be required to complete travel waivers prior to leaving on the trip. The Student Travel Waiver and Release Form include health and emergency contact information for the students participating and is a requirement of the College. For students that are under the age of 18 years, a parent or guardian signature is required. Upon completion, please email all waivers forms for all student attendees to the Office of Student Engagement. For any questions or assistance, please email clubs@cwi.edu. 
     
  3. Facilitation of Club Travel Purchases
    After both the Prior Approval for Student Travel Form and Student Travel Waiver have been submitted, the Office of Student Engagement will begin the process for making all club arrangements for travel on their behalf. Once complete, the club advisor(s) will receive a comprehensive packet including but not limited to:
    • Travel itinerary.
    • Copies of travel waiver, including health and emergency contact information.
    • Lodging reservation/receipt and room assignments, if applicable.
    • Additional reservations/receipts of purchase, if applicable.

Post Travel Steps

  1. Submit Student Post Travel Report
    Following club travel, the lead advisor is required to submit a Student Post Travel Report. The purpose of this form is to report any incidents, if any, that occurred while on the trip. Advisors must complete this form within five (5) business days of returning from student travel.
     
  2. Club Advisor Travel Reimbursement
    After verifying the submission of the Student Post Travel Report, the Office of Student Engagement will work to prepare reimbursement paperwork for each employee that attended. Any applicable receipts should be emailed to the Office of Student Engagement to assist in the preparation. This reimbursement paperwork will cover only approved expenses, including but not limited to:
    • Employee per diem. 
    • Transportation receipts (e.g., parking, tolls, Lyft, Uber), if applicable.
    • Any additional receipts, if originally approved and applicable.

Advisors can expect a reimbursement check from the Business Office upon Student Engagement’s submission of the paperwork.