Almost every club received a small increase in their funding, while some, like the Fine Arts Organization and the Japanese Student Organization, received double the amount of the previous year’s allocation.

There were, however, some notable exceptions to the increased funding. A number of religious organizations—Catholic Campus Club, Gospel Choir, Hillel, Orthodox Christian Fellowship, Intervarsity—all received a decreased amount in comparison to last year’s budget.

The political clubs also saw a change with the College Republicans shrinking from $15,070 in the 2011-2012 academic year to $8,384 for 2012-2013. Interestingly, they still received more than the College Democrat’s $7,500 budget.

Another development was the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transsexual Alliance’s budget increase. In the drastic 2011-2012 budget cuts that consumed almost every club, aside from the Student Activities Board, the LGBTA dropped from $13,500 to $8,489.

According to the LGBTA’s secretary, Nolan Theodore, the club was “not able to function to our optimum level this year” due to the budget cuts and a speaker cap that has since been repealed.

Thomas Kirnbauer, the 2011-2012 USG treasurer, said that the reason for some of the decreases in funding was the fact that 15 clubs did not send in their budget applications, even when the deadline was extended. As a result, any club that wanted to apply for funding in the Spring could only receive 66 percent of the previous year’s budget.

“If a club doesn’t apply in Spring, then we don’t want to reward them when they apply later,” Kirnbauer said when explaining the law.

There is also the option of event grants, an opportunity for event funding that was provided after last year’s budget cuts. Of course, any organization that does not host events cannot apply for this extra funding.

Kirnbauer’s successor, Allen Abraham, said in an email that the process of applying for funding would be simplified when he takes over office.

“By remedying certain problems with the budget I meant that I want to make the process fairer and simpler,” said Abraham. “I will talk with club leaders next year to see where they face difficulty and look into ways to simplify the process.”

Abraham also mentioned that it is not fair to say what clubs deserve the most revision and that the process of allocation depends on who is eligible and who actually applies.

One organization that has undergone much scrutiny is the Student Activities Board, a USG agency that is in charge of providing on-campus entertainment as well as organizing events like Roth Regatta and Wiz Khalifa concert.

In the last budget, SAB received $534,887, the largest allocation of funds to any club. There were rumors circulating that $100,000 of the SAB budget was not spent, but according to Kirnbauer “there was a huge misconception,” and the rumors were unsubstantiated.

He did mention, however, that SAB had a few issues with booking artists to come out to Stony Brook and perform.

“The biggest problem is definitely the athletics arena,” said Kirnbauer when describing the difficulties with booking talent. “We have to book a year in advance, we only get one day for prep and one day for pack-down. It’s hard to find big names to perform on specific dates.”

He also mentioned that SAB was a new organization within USG, so they were learning while on the job.

According to Kirnbauer, SAB will begin booking the Student Activities Center ballroom for every Thursday to provide a space for incoming performers. This will hopefully alleviate the problem of venue space and prevent awkwardly timed concerts, like last semester’s Sunday night Chiddy Bang concert.

With the academic year drawing to a close, we look forward, with hope, to a year full of activities and events hosted by Stony Brook’s clubs. Perhaps we will finally return to the glory days of Stony Brook’s concert series.

“We never know our life’s chances, until we know our life’s choices,” Smiley said. He is the host of several public television and radio shows, including PBS’ late-night talk show Tavis Smiley and co-hosts Smiley & West, with fellow event speaker, Cornel West. Smiley inspires the next generation as a broadcaster, author, advocate and philanthropist, and continues to be an influential voice for change.

“This is a love tour, that’s really what it is,” said West. He is one of the nation’s leading public intellectuals, and is an educator and philosopher. West is a university professor of African American Studies at Princeton University, and holds more than 20 honorary degrees.

Smiley started off the presentation by getting right down to business, letting the packed house know that we “need to care about the least among us.”

He spoke about his relationship with Bill Clinton, and his thoughts about what he refused to call welfare “reform.”

“Bill Clinton is my friend,” Smiley said, “but he was wrong to sign that welfare bill 15 years ago.”

The discussion of Clinton brought up the subject of the presidential debates, and Smiley made it a point to say, “In the three presidential debates in 2008, you never heard the words ‘poor’ or ‘poverty’ once.”

Smiley openly talked about his childhood, “I know this story because I lived this story.” Coming from a family of 13 kids, he lived in a three-bedroom, one-bathroom trailer. “You can build an entire life on hope, but even hope these days needs help,” Smiley added.

Smiley cleared his throat and introduced the audience to West, who stood up and asked the audience, “What does it mean to be human?”

West effectively used his witty charm and humor to highlight the histories of poverty in different racial communities, while bringing the diverse audience together in recognizing this growing problem in America.

“For so long, poverty has been associated with people of color,” West said, then adding, “but [then] it starts spilling over on the vanilla side of town.” Laughter filled the room, and for the first time, poverty was looked at as something more than just a burden in life, but an obstacle that could be conquered. “Only the strong survive it,” said West. “It requires being creative.”

Following the talk, a Q&A was held, giving the audience a chance to question Smiley and West. When asked what Stony Brook University’s role is in breaking poverty, West said, having a voice in our society is something that we can all do. “Students should always be a part [of] the community,” West added.

As the night came to a close, the audience rose and the sound of clapping echoed through the Staller Center. Poverty is something that needs to be addressed, “sooner than right now, and quicker than at once,” Smiley said.

Aimee Pomeroy was elected the new Executive Vice President, replacing former EVP Deborah Machalow, and defeating S.A.F.E. Party member Jason Sockin by a margin of over 300 votes.

Patrick Abelein, a Seawolves for Change party member alongside Pomeroy and new USG President Anna Lubitz, was elected the new Vice President of Student Life. He defeated Nick Ela, another S.A.F.E. Party candidate, by 155 votes. Abelein replaces the former VP of Student Life, Deron Hill.

In comparison to the original elections, there were approximately 700 less votes total for each of these positions in the runoff elections. Support for Seawolves for Change party members Pomeroy and Abelein, decreased by 286 votes, while S.A.F.E party members, Sockin and Ela saw a 399 vote drop-off.

In the initial election for VP of Student Life, Ela lost to Abelein by a mere 25 votes, but saw a more significant loss in the runoffs. Sockin suffered much more in the second election, losing 190 votes. Pomeroy lost only 157 student votes, but still earned enough to beat her competitor by almost twice as many votes.

The runoff elections have brought the final tally of Seawolves for Change members present in USG to a whopping 22 seats, including four of the seven officer positions and three class representative positions. The party also holds 13 out of the 17 Senate seats for the College of Arts and Sciences, one of two Senate seats for the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and the only Senate position for Health Science. By holding 22 out of 32 total positions, Seawolves for Change will have over a two-thirds majority in USG if they all vote cohesively.

As the academic year draws to a close, the Undergraduate Student Government prepares for a new beginning.

Anna Lubitz, a sophomore biology major and music minor, was elected President by a margin of over 300 votes. Lubitz, who has served as a USG Senator since the Spring of 2011, beat out USG Vice President of Academic Affairs Adil Hussain and Juan Pablo Cordon.

Lubitz, a member of the Seawolves for Change party, received 903 votes, while her competitors did not receive as many votes combined. Hussain earned 612 votes and Cordon 242.

Allen Abraham will serve as Treasurer after narrowly defeating Cyril Kattuppallil. Abraham won with 865 votes, while Kattuppallil received a close 837.

Sophia Marsh and Amanda Cohen, both running unopposed, took the positions of Vice President of Communications and Vice President of Clubs and Organizations respectively. Derek Cope will serve as the new Vice President of Academic Affairs.

This week’s elections also included the vote to make the Student Activity Fee optional for all students. Students voted 1120 to 963 to keep the fee mandatory, ensuring that student clubs will still be able to function for the next two years.

The election for executive vice president and vice president of student life are going to be up for another vote soon in a runoff election, as the candidates running did not receive a majority win of votes cast. Aimee Pomeroy and Jason Sockin will go up against each other for EVP, having knocked Kia Valkonen out of the race. For the VP of Student Life, Patrick Abelein and Nicholas Ela will face-off in another election without Tyrik Jiang on the ballot.

Only about 2,000 students voted in the election over the past four days, despite the online convenience of the voting system through SOLAR.

Some students, such as sophomore biology major Tenzeeila Ali, think this low voting turnout is due to a lack of publicity.

“I didn’t even know it was happening,” said Ali. “I would have voted if I’d realized.”

Syed Karim, a senior biology major, agreed. He felt there was much more the candidates could have done to make students aware.

“People running could’ve been around more,” Karim said. “They could’ve come by lecture halls or something.”

Although the number of students that voted only represented a small percentage of the student body, it was still an increase over the number of students who voted last year.

Vote

Questions for candidates:

1. Out of all the 16,000 students on campus, what makes you the most deserving student to influence the more $3.1 million budget funded by our student activity fee?

2. What experience do you bring to the position you are running for? Why are you qualified?

3. Is this your first time getting involved in USG? If so, why are you interested in getting involved? If not, why do you wish to be involved again?

4. What do you think is the best thing about USG and if elected, how do you plan to continue that?

5. On a scale of 9-10* (10 being the highest) how successful were the past two semesters for USG?

6. What are USG’s biggest flaws, and how do you plan to correct those? For those currently in USG, what have you done to try to correct those flaws?

7. Do you think it’s right for USG to give SAB the same budget next year despite a surplus of over 100,000 for this year?

8. Do you think that putting on successful campus events should be prioritized over increasing clubs’ budgets?

9. Representing the student body sometimes means taking a firm stance against administration policies. How willing are you to speak up on behalf of the student body, even when it means conflicting with administrators?

*Please note we intentionally asked for a scale of 9-10.

Click links to see responses

For USG President:

Adil Hussain

Anna Lubitz

For Executive Vice President:

Jason Sockin

For Treasurer:

Allen Abraham

For Vice President of Student Life:

Nicholas Ela

Tyrik Jiang

For Vice President of Communications:

Sophia Marsh

Vice President of Academic Affairs:

Zachary Guarnero

List of candidates who did not respond to survey:

President: Juan Pablo Cordon

Vice President: Aimee Pomeroy, Kia Valkonen

Treasurer: Cyril Kattuppallil

Vice President of Student Life: Patrick John Abelein

Vice President of Clubs and Organizations: Amanda Cohen

Vice President of Academic Affairs: Derek Cope

Undergraduate Student Government Treasurer Thomas Kirnbauer brought the matter before the Legislative Review Committee because the National Tournament Grant Act, as it is called, violates the USG constitution, he said. Under the constitution, USG may not make any law or policy that creates separate criteria for certain clubs to receive funding. The act in question allows sports clubs eligible to compete in national tournaments to receive grants that would cover the costs of attending.

Students from a number of clubs, including men’s rugby, women’s soccer, the pre-law society, the mock trial club and the crew club said they fear that if the act is removed, they would be deprived of the opportunity to compete at the highest level.

“Don’t let all of us work for nothing,” Kyle Geoghan, former president of the men’s rugby team, said during the meeting. The team has competed in three national tournaments already this year, and members say it would have been impossible to afford without the grants.

The students also argued that allowing teams to travel to national tournaments puts Stony Brook’s name out there, and brings the school recognition.

The committee ultimately decided to table the legislation, formally called Revision #4 to the Financial Bylaws Act, until it could be discussed further and USG could come up with a solution that also pleased students. On Thursday, March 29, the USG Senate approved a resolution to create a temporary committee, facilitated by Executive Vice President Deborah Machalow, to examine the necessary changes and propose amendments to existing procedures, according to the USG website. The committee will meet with concerned students and report back to the Senate during its April 19 meeting.

Though the revision, if passed by both the Legislative Review Committee and the Senate, and signed by USG President Mark Maloof, would have taken effect at the conclusion of this semester, students said they fear it would take USG too long to reinstate a reworded national tournament grant act that fell within the guidelines of the constitution, and they would be barred from participating in those tournaments next semester.

Earlier this semester, the roller hockey club was forced to pull its bid to a tournament in Salt Lake City because the Senate failed to pass legislation in time to allow the club to use its funding for flights. Under the current USG Financial Bylaws, clubs may only use their budgets for ground transportation. The club members couldn’t afford to pay for the flights out of pocket.

“Based on precedent, there’s not much faith that we can have,” CJ Kottuppallil, a member of the men’s rugby team, said.

USG Vice President of Communications Stephanie Berlin said she wanted students to know that USG is willing to hear student concerns. She said she spends plenty of time in her office, but students rarely come to talk with her.

“It’s heartbreaking to see a club not be able to do something because of the way legislation is written,” Berlin said.

The students protesting said they would rather see the act amended to allow all clubs to be eligible for national grants, rather than just sports clubs. But Senator David Adams, who sits on the Legislative Review Committee, said during the meeting that the small amount of money available for the grants would be depleted before sports teams made it far enough in the season to even qualify for national tournaments.

“I’m leaning towards wanting to keep more money on campus,” Adams said. “I don’t want USG to be a travel agency. I want us to be fostering things on campus—whether it be a nice pick-up game of rugby out on the fields or some folks in the basement discussing Sartre.

Whatever you want to do, we should be funding that to an appropriate level and it should be really building events and activities on campus.”

He said that somewhere between 30 to 40 percent of USG’s budget goes to competitive clubs. “Our job is to have activities on this campus for students to enjoy, and to spend our money on something only a few students can enjoy…that’s what I have a problem with,” he said.

However, he added that the National Tournaments Grant Act is unconstitutional, and it his therefore his responsibility as an elected official—and the responsibility of USG—to repeal it, regardless of his opinion on the law.

Waiting for a Stony Brook bus for 15 minutes can seem like a century to someone on their way to class. There could be many reasons for public transportation being late, and not knowing where the bus is or how long it will take can drive the waiting passengers crazy.

However, that can all change with the new GPS tracking system created by a group of students and faculty from the Center of Excellence in Wireless and Information Technology.

According to James O’Connor, director of the Sustainability and Transit Operations, the student-developed project was based on feedback from an advisory group of students. CEWIT formed a partnership with students and faculty from the computer science department to give the Stony Brook community what they wanted.

“It’s a win-win. It gives students opportunities for real world experience and it’s cost effective,” said O’Connor.

The program consists of a GPS router, a tablet for driver interface and a card reader to keep track of the amount of passengers on the bus. All of the information comes together to in software that communicates the capacity of the bus and the estimated arrival time to those waiting.

The system, which was developed at Stony Brook as a part of the curriculum for students in the computer science department, is currently running on two different routes—Hospital/Chapin and the Railroad routes—as part of a pilot program. In the fall 2012 semester, the program will be expanded to the Express, Inner Loop and R&D routes. The project will be completed by spring 2013 when the system will be added to the Shopping, Southampton and Outer Loop routes. Tests on the system will be ongoing from late April until May, according to O’Connor.

The only cost of this new system is that it might increase the transportation fee for students. Since the cost of fuel has increased and the cost of fringe benefits is always changing, the fee did change. However, the software was developed in-house, and it is cost effective, according to O’Connor.

“We have received positive feedback from the advisory group,” he said.

The main outcome of the GPS system, according to O’Connor, is to bring back the bike share program.

“Our goal is that you don’t have to wait for a bus, you can hop on one of the bikes if the bus is taking too long,” O’Connor said.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that buses will not be changing, as well.

“There are always plans to buy new buses,” said O’Connor. They lower the main cost and increase efficiency. “We purchase two new buses every year to replace two old buses,” he added.

O’Connor says that the project also includes a downloadable phone app that will be available in the future.

The $37.5 million project, which DiMonda and her team began working on in 1999, will be fully air-conditioned and heated, and create a new place for students to gather, as well as create new job opportunities for students, DiMonda said.

The facility will feature a full floor of cardio equipment, a tenth of a mile-long track, and an interactive spinning studio with 30 participant bikes, one instructor bike and a screen that will virtually transport students to different locations while they ride.

DiMonda hopes is that each piece of cardio equipment will have its own individual screen with cable access, places to plug in an iPod, and other technological accommodations.

Fitness classes that are now held in the basement of the Student Activities Center will instead be held in the recreation center. Studios with wood floors and built-in audio systems are being made with the capacity to hold classes of up to 49 people.

A wellness resource room in the building, complete with computer kiosks, reception desks and exam rooms, will be used for health screenings, including depression screenings, and consultations with personal trainers.

According to DiMonda, the center will be “the place to be” on campus, and will likely bring in people who do not normally work out.

“This is going to create a healthy environment for our students,” she said.

The center’s creation doubles as an employment opportunity—it will employ over 75 students to operate the facility and others to run fitness classes. Interviews will be held on for those who have already applied on April 21. The new employees will attend training when the fall semester begins.

The center will be open to Stony Brook students only by key card access, having to scan their ID cards to get in. Students can, however, obtain guest passes. The guest pass policy is undergoing debate, and any decision made now is preliminary. The policy will be finalized after the center’s opening, once administrators have seen how many students frequent the center and how often, DiMonda said.

Matt Larsen, senior associate director of athletics, said the center would be a huge benefit to athletics from a recruiting standpoint.  DiMonda agreed, noting that the first place recruiters take prospective student athletes is the school’s recreational facility.

But the space will not just work to serve sports teams. Clubs such as Puso and ballroom dance are constantly in need of practice and rehearsal space, DiMonda said, and often have to use inadequate spaces around campus.

“They go in the Benedict atrium and use the windows at night to practice.  Is that appropriate at an institution of our caliber?  I don’t think so,” DiMonda said.

Sports clubs will have first priority to reserve rooms in the facility for practices and events, but all clubs will have the opportunity to do so if the rooms have not been booked.

Mallory Rothstein, a freshman on the advisory board for the creation of the recreation center said, “the $75 fee was determined years ago and since then has not been increased,” adding that she thinks that what the center will offer students is worth the price.

The 2012/2013 Broad Based Fees Proposal motions for an additional $75 Recreation and Fields Fee, to be put towards the building and maintenance of the university’s new Recreation Center, and increases to all broad based fees except the Infirmary Fee.

Among those in attendance were representatives from each of the departments that have a stake in the proposal—James O’Connor, director of sustainability and transportation operations, Matt Larson, senior associate director of athletics, Susan DiMonda, associate dean and director of student life, Dr. Rachel Bergeson, director of student health services, Chuck Powell, assistant provost for teaching and learning with technology, and Lyle Gomes, interim vice president for finance. Each representative spoke about the proposed increases for their respective departments.

The athletics department has requested an increase of $7.50 per semester, or 3.3 percent of the current fee. The proposed increase to the technology fee is $7.50 per semester as well, a 3.8 percent change. The transportation department has asked a $5-per-semester increase—a difference of 4.1 percent.

Students saw increases of the athletics and transportation fees last year as well, but Larson and O’Connor said the proposed increases for the 2012-2013 school year are still necessary.

“The fee increase that was approved last year really wasn’t enough to bring us out of where we are,” O’Connor said.

According to O’Connor, the fee increase will cover costs that have changed since last year, including rising fuel costs and a changed fringe benefit rate for the university’s bus drivers.

Larsen said the athletics fee increase would be used to cover some Title IX compliance concerns, as well as operational costs and increases to transportation costs that were not covered by last year’s increase.

Susan DiMonda discussed the $75 Recreation Center Fee, the largest of the proposed fees, which would affect only undergraduate students.

According to DiMonda, a survey of Stony Brook students in the year 2000 showed student willingness to pay for a new recreational center. Tuition and economic conditions have changed drastically over the past 12 years, but DiMonda does not think public sentiment has changed with regard to the center’s creation.

“Students join gyms right now, they probably pay more than $75 a semester, and with this facility they’re gonna get much more than they get in the local gym,” DiMonda said.  The second floor alone will be home to about 112 pieces of cardio equipment, she said.

Though she has not received any complaints from students, DiMonda admitted she does not know how aware students are of the fee, noting that she has only spoken to students who are on the center’s advisory board.

Mallory Rothstein, a freshman on the recreation center advisory committee, said she feels the fee is reasonable and appropriate.

“I believe that what the center is going to offer the students is worth the price,” Rothstein said in a Facebook message. “I do feel that all students will initially be upset just because no one wants to pay any more than they already do, but once they understand what the facility will offer, I think they will be okay with it.”

Rothstein said she has not heard any complaints yet, and that she does her best to explain to any student she speaks to exactly what they are paying for and why.

Meanwhile, the Infirmary Fee, which covers all programs that fall under the umbrella of Student Health Services, will remain the same, Bergeson proudly announced.

“We’re content to stay where we are for the time being,” she said, noting that no major changes are set to be made to health services operations at this time.

Campus officials stressed the idea that they are making an effort to obtain student feedback. The media conference, facilitated by Media Relations Officer Lauren Sheprow, was part of an on-going student consultation process for the proposed increases, said Gomes.

A letter informing students of the increases was sent out on March 28, and an open information session for all undergraduate students will be held April 11 during Campus Lifetime in the Student Activity Center. Graduate students can attend a forum discussion to be held on April 12 from 4:30-6:00p.m. in room 302 of the Student Activity Center.

California Pizza Kitchen in Roth Cafe will close at the end of this semester, and the Faculty Student Association committee that recommends changes to campus dining is considering Red Mango to replace it, and Starbucks to replace Pura Vida downstairs, according to the minutes of the committee’s March 14 meeting.

California Pizza Kitchen is closing all its college locations, though the company did not give any reason for doing so, according to Angela Agnello, Director of Marketing and Communications for the Faculty Student Association. Agnello said CPK had the lowest number of transactions in the fall 2011 semester, compared to the Student Activities Center, Kelly, the Union, Wendy’s and Jasmine.

“Although fans of California Pizza Kitchen may be disappointed, this will give Roth Dining Center the opportunity to undergo a summer renovation, bringing an exciting new food concept for Fall 2012,” Agnello said in an email.

The Mean Plan Resolution Committee, which is made up of three appointees from Lackmann Culinary Services, two appointees made by the FSA Executive Director, one appointee made by the president of FSA, and up to six students or other members of the campus community, makes recommendations to the FSA executive director and the director of campus dining services.

“You live here for four years, you have to survive with the food on campus,” Jessica Fellows, a student cashier at CPK, said. “It’s nice when things change.”

But other students expressed concern that CPK’s closing would reduce the variety in food available on campus, and students may be forced to eat at the unhealthier option of Wendy’s.

“I don’t know where I would eat if CPK closed,” Emily Tobias, a student who lives in Cardozo College in Roth Quad, said. “Especially on the weekends because the SAC closes at six and this is the only thing open.”

On March 14, the committee discussed replacing CPK with either a Mexican-themed dining option or an Asian fusion concept with Chinese, Korean, Malaysian and Thai food, but student committee members said they were concerned that those options would not draw enough students, according to the minute available on FSA’s website. The committee said there is a possibility of adding a frozen yogurt kiosk, such as Red Mango, upstairs, and a name brand coffee option, such as Starbucks, to replace Pura Vida downstairs. The new dining option is expected to be open for the Fall 2012 semester, Agnello said.

Diane Poon, a student at Stony Brook who lives in Roth, said she eats at CPK at least once a day. “I feel like its one of the best food places in Roth,” she said. “But if it’s replaced by something better, it won’t be a tragedy.”