The Undergraduate Student Government (USG) Senate said goodbye to Carlos Cobo, a member of their professional staff, at Thursday’s meeting.

Cobo, once the Director of Administration and Operations for USG, is transferring to a new role as Assistant Director for Student Life Risk Management and Operations.

Cobo reminisced on his time spent with USG and left senators with advice moving forward.

“This has been an amazing four years … since those four years, every student leader has really come to the challenge to be able to provide a lot of different things, whether it’s monetary or it’s advocacy or it’s just being present and there for one another,” Cobo said.

Cobo stressed the important role of USG at Stony Brook University and, consequently, the importance of the senators’ individual roles.

“Don’t underestimate your ability and your power as a student leader here. USG has a huge place in campus life here. So with that in mind, continue to be accessible and reliable and welcoming to other students here on campus,” he urged.

Cobo also expressed the significance of USG’s role in supporting various student initiatives, including those for Black and Latinx students, which he is very passionate about.

“It’s not a goodbye, it’s a see you later, probably see you next week. Thank you guys in advance for all the work that you do for students, especially those who might feel marginalized and underrepresented, all those types of students like myself. USG is a huge stakeholder in Stony Brook University, so don’t forget that. I definitely won’t,” Cobo said.

He advised that students build relationships with administrators, staff and advisors by meeting with them outside of office hours to understand how they can support students.

The senators and staff members surprised him with cake, music and kind words and expressed their appreciation and admiration towards him.

The meeting then transitioned to a discussion of various club budgets and grants.

Christopher Kubelka, President of Stony Brook’s Bowling Club, and Joe Bell, the Bowling Club’s secretary, joined the senate to request their finalized budget.

Kubelka outlined their goals for the year, including improving weaknesses, recruiting new members and hosting monthly recreational practice sessions.

The club faced transportation challenges, with only two competitive team members having cars. They plan to use a new budget to transport more members and host on-campus events like a bowling ball giveaway.

Bonnie Wong, USG’s Treasurer, raised concerns about the club’s financial management, lack of on-campus events and the fairness of their election process.

“They don’t have any events open to students on campus because we don’t have a bowling lane. [They] were also submitting some late invoice requests from last year and requested reimbursements,” Wong said.

Wong also mentioned that the club went into the negatives during the spring of last year, which led to them being defunded.

The club requested just over $12,000, similar to the budget they were granted last year; however, Aryan Sharma, Vice President of Clubs and Organizations, brought up that their line budget only added up to around $8,000.

“I think we need to make sure exactly what amount you’re approving for, just to make sure that you don’t go giving them a few extra thousand than what they were actually at,” Sharma said.

Wong continued to explain that the financial bylaws cease any club from obtaining funding from USG unless they have at least one on-campus event each semester.

Because the Bowling Club was already given a maximum budget of $900 by the Probationary Budget Committee, USG Senators considered cutting their requested budget.

At-large Senator Uzair Mahmud suggested splitting their budget from last year in half to a total of $3,930.51; the senators approved of this motion.

Makayla Zito, Asude Taştan, Matthew Supa and Ken Bailing — members of Stony Brook’s professional co-ed pre-law fraternity, Phi Alpha Delta — also joined the senate to discuss the chapter’s budget for this year’s pre-law conference and mock trial competition.

The conference focuses on leadership development, law school preparation and networking, with a law expo featuring over 100 schools.

The chapter has secured $550 in fundraising thus far. The budget includes travel, accommodation and registration costs totaling $4,260. The chapter seeks approval for a $2,705.50 budget grant, with additional fundraising to cover the remaining expenses.

Senators discussed the ability of the fraternity to fundraise the remainder of their funds but approved the requested budget with little discussion needed.

Andrew Noueihed, President of Stony Brook’s Taiwanese Students Association (TSA), joined the committee to campaign for the club’s new budget appeal.

TSA aims to enhance its cultural and social activities, particularly focusing on food and community engagement. They faced budget constraints during the 2023-2024 academic year, necessitating collaboration with other campus clubs. Despite this, they successfully managed events throughout the year.

The total amount requested was just over $9,000, with a request for an additional $500.

A motion to approve the TSA budget request was made, and the vote resulted in approval.

The senate then moved on to elections for new senators. Both Karthik Pyneni and Emelio “Geo” Harris made their cases to be elected to the USG Senate.

Pyneni articulated his interest in extending certain events to the community around the University and how that would enhance the experience.

Senators discussed his involvement in various other clubs and organizations and how that would hinder his ability to be fully involved with USG.

Harris, a freshman at Stony Brook, emphasized his commitment to mental health awareness initiatives and his on-campus involvement as an audio-video technician.

Harris aims to foster community connections and advocacy. He highlighted his previous experience as a high school student government treasurer.

USG Vice President of Student Life Tanisa Rahman brought into question Harris’ ability, as a first-year student, to stay on top of certain responsibilities.

“As a senator, how are you going to keep yourself accountable?” Rahman asked.

Harris mentioned his capability to hold himself to something he had said he would do. He brought up that he sat in at the last USG Senate meeting despite not yet being elected, displaying his interest and determination.

At-large senator Rayan Iqbal inquired as to what kind of advocacy Harris was geared towards.

“Sometimes I feel very overlooked, especially in high school, middle school … So it’s really important to me that there are students who don’t feel like that; no one feels like there’s nothing for them, especially at Stony Brook,” Harris said. “This is a community. We’re all here together.”

The senators deliberated on what kind of addition Harris would add to the group. Rahman shared that his freshness would be good to incorporate into the group.

“I think he’s curious, but that’s genuine curiosity, and so that’s why because I imagine you guys want that from him,” Rahman said.

Harris was elected unanimously.