Frequently Asked Questions About the Secular Student Alliance

The Secular Student Alliance (SSA) is sometimes asked for more information about the organization and the secular student movement in general.

What is the SSA?

The Secular Student Alliance (SSA) is an umbrella organization uniting atheist, agnostic, humanist, rationalist, skeptic, and freethought students and groups on high school and campuses across the world. The SSA is dedicated to building secular student communities and promoting freethought, critical thinking, and scientific inquiry. The SSA also defends civil liberties, church-state separation, and religious freedom.

Are my donations to SSA tax deductible?

The SSA has been recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) educational non-profit. Because of this, donations and membership dues to the SSA are tax deductible.  For details about how to deduct donations to 501(c)(3)s, consult a tax professional.

Are you a partisan organization?

No. The SSA is a non-profit organization that is not affiliated with any particular party or political figure.

Are you a religious organization? Are you a cult?

No. The freethought movement is dedicated to freeing the human mind of dogma. We have no creed. We seek to better understand our world. We admit we do not fully understand it.

Are you an atheist organization?

Most of us are atheists. As doubters of religious doctrine, freethinkers generally are atheists or agnostics. Most, of the SSA's members disbelieve in or doubt the existence of a deity.

However, skepticism of religious dogma is only a part of what defines the SSA. Among other things, supporters of the SSA believe in religious liberty; church/state separation; the humanistic notions of equal rights and the inherent dignity of every human being; the importance of science and critical thinking; and the importance of caring for humanity as a whole in the absence of Divine guidance.

Are you anti-Christian or anti-religious?

No. However, we believe in academic freedom and freedom of inquiry, and do not shrink from presenting rational and scientific critiques of dogma. The SSA also opposes attempts to force beliefs on others. That said, the SSA is a strong supporter of church-state separation and the religious liberty: the right of every person to believe and worship as he or she pleases, or not to do so at all.

You mean some of you absolutely reject the notion of God?

Most of us do not, some of us do. By "atheist," most of us mean that we lack theism. All of us take note of the fact that through history "God" and other supernatural beings have been fantastically difficult to think and talk about in a coherent and detailed way—let alone observe or measure.

So you all deny even the possibility that a god exists?

Those of us who use the word atheist to describe ourselves mean to say that we are without theism. We see the burden of proof on the theist to demonstrate that the world is the way she is suggesting it is. Lacking sufficent evidence to persuade us of her claims, we don't believe them. Few if any of us take a "leap of faith" that there is no god. Certianly no more of a leap of faith than most adults do in their lack of belief in the tooth fairy, Santa Claus, or the Smurfs.

Are you anti-spirituality?

Spirituality is a complex concept. In one sense we are very spiritual--in the sense of the term "spiritual" as it refers to a strong sense of emotion, such as a deep appreciation of the arts or a sense of wonder at the scale or beauty of the universe, i.e., the "poetry of science." This sense of spirituality is compatible with freethought. Many great freethinkers talk and write emotionally about their respect and awe for the size and age of the universe, the beauty of science, or the power of the arts.

However, we reject leaping from statements about emotions to factual claims about the universe. Freethinkers take "spiritual" claims that deal with the physical universe very skeptically.

What is humanism? It is mentioned a lot on your web site.

Humanism is a way of thinking and living that aims to bring out the best in people so that all people can have the best in life. Humanists reject supernatural and authoritarian beliefs--requiring instead beliefs to be based on evidence and reason. They affirm that we must take responsibility for our own lives and for the communities and world in which we live. Humanism emphasizes reason and scientific inquiry, individual freedom and responsibility, human values and compassion, and the need for tolerance and cooperation. Not all members of the SSA are humanists, but a lot are.

As humanism has no central creed, it’s difficult to say if we’re "officially" a humanist organization. There is no doubt that we lean in that direction.

To learn more about humanism, we suggest the following:

• The Humanist Philosophy In Perspective (1984)
  
• Secular Humanist Declaration
• Affirmations of Humanism: A Statement of Principles
• 10 Myths About Secular Humanism by Matt Cherry & Molleen Matsumura
• Humanist Manifesto I
• Humanist Manifesto II
• Humanist Manifesto III

 

Can my group join as is, or must I start a separate SSA club?

Your group can join as is. The SSA is an umbrella organization uniting many student groups across the world. To become associated with the SSA, existing groups need only to affiliate with it. If there is no freethought-related group in your area, the SSA is designed to help you start one .

Do I have to believe in everything that you do? Do all of my group's members have to?

No. The SSA recognizes that universal agreement among any group is rare. The SSA's members are willing to discuss, work out, and even live with differences. One principle that unites the SSA's membership is the necessity of the universal application of reasoned inquiry. No subject is considered so sacred that the standards of reason are inapplicable. The SSA was created in part to foster cooperation within the various factions within the Community of Reason; we recognize that those who stand in opposition to the forces of intolerance and irrationality will benefit greatly by working together in spite of minor differences; "united we stand, divided we fall."

Does membership cost anything?

Affiliating your group with the SSA and getting access to our affiliate services is free.  The primary task of the SSA is to support atheist/humanist/freethought/skeptic groups on high school and college campuses. 

Joining as an individual member is $10/year for students, $25/year for educators and $35/year for other non-students.  The SSA is a democratic membership organization and these members not only elect our board of directors but also provide a significant amount of the money that lets SSA support affiliate groups.

Does the SSA ally itself with other organizations?

Yes. The SSA seeks to build bridges between students, graduates, national organizations, community groups, and campus organizations. In order to do so, the SSA seeks to build cooperative relationships with all freethought-oriented organizations, by building mutually beneficial relationships, encouraging co-sponsorship of events, and helping students find groups that fit them as they graduate and leave their campus organizations.  We have a section of our advisory board devoted to representatives from other organizations.


Cooperation is a core value of the SSA and we even has a section of our web site devoted to stories about cooperation. 

It is also worth noting that the SSA is proud to be a voting member of the Secular Coalition for America. 

How is the SSA funded?

The SSA is a non-profit public charity that receives funding through tax-deductible donations from individuals and organizations.

We invite members of the general public to join our organization. If you would like to support us but don't want to join for whatever reason, you're welcome to simply give a donation.

From 2000 to 2006, we have received over $110,000 in support from the Institute for Humanist Studies' Grant Program. We are deeply grateful to the IHS for their amazing support of our organization and their willing to invest in the future of humanism and secularism.

How is the SSA governed?

The SSA is governed by a Board of Directors that is democratically elected by our individual members every two years in February.  The Board of Directors have the final say on all SSA decisions (except, obviously, who gets elected to the Board of Directors--which only the membership decides).

The Board of Directors is very open to input from individual members, SSA Staff, volunteers, and the SSA's Advisory Board members.  However, only the Board of Directors and membership (in elections) have any actual governing power. 

For more exciting details on how the SSA is governed, please consult our Bylaws. (The SSA's Bylaws were updated on 7/3/2008.)

How much control does the SSA exercise over its member groups?

The SSA exercises no control over the campus groups that affiliate with it. Each group directs its own activities and preserves its independence and autonomy. The SSA simply facilitates communication between campus groups and offers assistance and resources.

We do require our affiliates to fill out a short on-line affiliation survey twice a year, just so we know what they are doing and how we can help.  We also offer a minimum statement to help unaffiliated groups decide if they would be a good fit for affiliation.

If I don't have a group already, how can I start one?

The SSA is glad to help you start a campus group. This usually involves advertising on the campus, gathering interested students, and then approaching the college administration for official recognition of the group. The SSA has extensive experience with starting and running campus groups. For assistance getting a group started, the first thing to do is to request a group starting packet .  It's free.

If you want to ask some questions before you request a group starting packet , feel free to email our Campus Organizer at organizer@secularstudents.org

What are the differences between the CFI On Campus and the SSA?

• The SSA is governed by a democratically elected Board of Directors composed mainly of students and recent students with years of combined experience running student groups.
• Affiliates of the SSA have direct communication with the Board of Directors.
  
• The SSA works equally with all like-minded organizations.
• The SSA is a voting member of the Secular Coalition for America, the first organization to have a registered, full-time lobbyist working to advance the causes of secular people in the U.S. capital.
  
The SSA encourages students and student groups to take advantage of all the resources available to you including the Center for Inquiry on Campus.

What is the SSA's general stance on political issues?

While the SSA has taken positions on a few political issues, not every SSA member or affiliated campus group agrees with, or need agree with, every position taken. The SSA recognizes and accommodates differences of opinion. Generally, the SSA values individual freedom and civil liberties, while striving to make reason the underpinning of political thought rather than tradition or religious dogma. In terms of specific issues, the SSA has taken stances on several related issues that have been attacked on religious grounds. The SSA supports church-state separation and religious liberty; freedom of speech; global human rights; equal rights for gays and lesbians, women, and minorities; reproductive freedom; and the availability of contraceptives and science based sex education. The SSA has taken a stance against school prayer and graduation prayers; public funding for religious schools; and censorship of literature, the arts, and the media.

Who can join the SSA?

Everyone is welcome to join the SSA as an individual member . To do so, so click on the "join " link in the upper right hand corner of the screen.

We are a 501(c)(3) educational non-profit, and membership dues are deductible to the full extent of the law.

We are also open to cooperating on an issue-by-issue basis with like-minded organizations. For student groups that wish to affiliate with the SSA, we have a minimum statement.