How to start a Ukrainian student organization at your university

The seven steps

1. 01

   Find your founding team

   • Most U.S. universities require between 3 and 10 enrolled students to register a new student organization — check your campus's exact minimum before recruiting.
   • You need at least a president and a treasurer; a vice president, secretary, and events lead make the first year far easier.
   • You do not need to be Ukrainian to start or join a Ukrainian student organization. Allies, heritage students, exchange students, and anyone interested in Ukraine are all welcome — and a mixed founding team usually builds a stronger club.
   • Post in campus group chats, international student offices, Slavic/REEES departments, and local Ukrainian churches or community centers to find the first ten interested students.
2. 02

   Check the rules at your student activities office

   • Every campus has an office — student affairs, student involvement, or student activities — that recognizes new organizations. Start there before writing anything.
   • Ask for: the new-org application, the required constitution template or clauses, the non-discrimination language you must include, the advisor requirement, and the registration deadline (many campuses only accept new orgs once or twice a year).
   • Ask what recognition unlocks: room booking, tabling at the activities fair, a campus email address, an org web page, and eligibility for student-government funding.
3. 03

   Find a faculty or staff advisor

   • Nearly every campus requires a full-time faculty or staff advisor to sign your registration.
   • Good places to look: history, political science, Slavic or Eastern European studies, international relations, the international students office, or any faculty or staff member of Ukrainian background.
   • Be concrete when you ask: explain the mission, say how many meetings a semester you expect them to attend (usually one or two), and offer to send a short semester summary.
4. 04

   Write your constitution

   • Use your university's template as the base — reviewers check for their required clauses first, and a rewritten document from scratch is the most common reason applications get bounced back.
   • Cover at minimum: name and purpose, membership eligibility and dues, officer positions and their duties, election timing and procedure, meeting frequency and quorum, finances, amendment procedure, and any required non-discrimination clause.
   • Write elections into the constitution now. Clubs that do not define how leadership transfers are the ones that quietly disappear when the founders graduate.
   • SUSTA's own constitution is published on our About page if you want a reference for how a Ukrainian student body structures governance.
5. 05

   Set up money and communications

   • Most campuses require student-org funds to sit in a university-held account rather than a personal or outside bank account — confirm which model yours uses before collecting a dollar.
   • Typical first-year revenue: student government allocations, modest dues, bake sales and pierogi/varenyky nights, merch, and sponsorship or donations from local Ukrainian community organizations.
   • Claim your handle on Instagram first — for U.S. Ukrainian student clubs it is where recruitment actually happens. Add a group chat for members and a simple email address for outside contacts.
   • Keep a shared drive with the constitution, budget, event templates, and login credentials so the next board inherits something real.
6. 06

   Plan a realistic first semester

   • Table at the student activities fair — it is usually the single largest membership intake of the year. Bring a sign-up sheet or QR code, a flag, and food.
   • Run one low-effort social early (coffee hour, movie night, varenyky-making) so new sign-ups meet each other before you ask anything of them.
   • Add one public-facing event per semester: a film screening, a speaker, a Ukrainian language hour, a cultural night for a holiday like Malanka or Easter, or a fundraiser for a vetted humanitarian organization.
   • Four to six well-run events beat a crowded calendar that burns out your board by November.
7. 07

   Connect to the national network

   • Register your organization with SUSTA to join the national directory, get listed on the Nationwide Student Map, and connect with Ukrainian student clubs at other universities.
   • Member clubs get access to shared resources, mentorship from established organizations, invitations to national convenings, and introductions to partner organizations.
   • Individual students at campuses without a club can register with SUSTA directly and still be part of the network.