I received my undergrad education in a country with government-funded schools so I’m a little lost trying to navigate the equivalent to “student government” organizations at American schools. I’m trying to ascertain what the standard sources of funding for student government bodies are at American universities (both small and large). Do most schools generally have at least one independent body that does not report/rely on school administration?
In a similar vein, what about student media groups, are these generally financially independent?
There are independent groups, who fund themselves and operate, as the name would imply, independently from the school – they may be given space on campus (or not, or may rent space on campus) or other amenities, but their operating budget including staff wages is generated by the group itself (e.g. in the case of a newspaper, through selling advertising).
Other universities have groups that are school-sponsored, and are in part (or potentially in whole) paid for through student fees.