Group Travel
Group Travel Defined
To process group travel through the Travel Office, the event for which the group is participating in normally occurs away from their ‘official station’, which for most groups will be Fayetteville, AR. Any group travel involving UAF students must adhere to Fayetteville Policy and Procedures 332.4.
In accordance with ACA 19-4-904 (d) state supported institutions of higher education may provide travel expenses for a group or number of students who, when accompanied by those who instruct the students in the fundamentals of a competitive sport and direct team strategy, must travel, and be recognized as a cohesive unit representing not only their institution, but exemplifying the State of Arkansas in their behavior, attitudes, interests, presentation, and conduct.
Group Travel may also include several guests along with a university employee traveling together for a particular event or circumstance.
In these circumstances the payment of group travel expenses, including those of students and employees, may be authorized.
Group travel involving UAF students and their expenses must be authorized before they can be incurred. (Please see Student Travel Information for detailed instructions pertaining to student or group travel.) A roster of attendees and their university (UARK) email address and/ or id is required. This helps in tracking who attended the trip and ensures that only eligible individuals are included in the expense reimbursement process. The roster of attendees and their email addresses should be provided either as an attachment to the authorization request or within the online documentation system used for managing travel expenses. If a roster is not available at the time of completing the Spend Authorization, a count of attendees is required. This count helps in estimating the amount of spend associated with the trip until a detailed roster can be provided.
Some examples of group travel functions:
- Study Abroad
- Intramural Sports
- Archaeological digs
- Athletic team events
Please Note: Group Travel MUST include student representation or guest representation. A group of employees going to the same function DOES NOT constitute group travel.
Group Travel Advances
Group trips may receive up to a 100% cash advance. A Cash Advance Agreement for Travelers form must be attached to every Spend Authorization requesting a cash advance.
An Expense Report for a domestic group trip should be submitted within 30 days after the trip end date, or 60 days after a large, complex Group trip.
Exceptions to the Travel Advance Policy will only be granted with written approval by the Travel and/or Treasurer’s Office.
If money is disbursed to students and other members of the group (federal per-diem limits are enforced for all recipients) the following information is required:
- Signature sheet legibly (preferably typed) listing of all students and staff who received funds
- Amount received broken out by Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner
- Student ID, Employee ID or uark email address
- Signature of the recipient of the funds
Group Travel Expenses
Please navigate to the expenses you may incur to find out what is required before and after traveling.
Should this be processed as Financial Aid instead of Travel?
Does the purpose of the trip meet requirements of the student's academic program? If yes, then it should be processed as financial aid.
If no, then we must ask another question. Do the travel funds cover semester expenses that are already built into the students cost of attendance such as housing, personal expenses, food, and transportation. For example, rent for an apartment, fuel for transportation, and car rental for the semester are all items already built into a student’s cost of attendance. If yes, then it should be processed as financial aid.