I'm affiliated with a number of clubs/(dis)organizations/brewing circles in this area. Granted, this a great area for homebrewers as there are a ton here. I get something different from each one of these groups. I can definitely say that each one has it's own personality and I know which ones fit my personality best. I only pay dues in one of these clubs (although I don't have to since I am the president) and that money basically gets used for our Christmas party and is there to pay for ingredients for events where we eventually get reimbursed for. We also may pay for food and such at these events as well.
In the OP's case, I think it's a good idea, but with only $900 I think it would be hard to get a decent system that people could use and learn on. What we even do in the dis-organization is have a brewday and when someone is done with their gear, a noob gets to have a go with it. This just happened recently actually. That way he can try it out and see how he likes brewing. He hadn't even ever done an extract batch before. What I'm saying is try to have a compromise and have a club brewday somewhere so people can learn. Use the funds to rent a space and/or purchase food for the event. That way it's educational (which I think most clubs claim they are, as I know mine does) and fun with probably little overhead. Just some thoughts.
At the end of the day, if you don't like the way the club is being run, try to become the president or find another club. Cheers!