Car Sharing Service Comes to Stony Brook; Club Funding Review Underway

A small fleet of hybrid rental cars at Stony Brook University is expected to allow students to save money on car ownership costs while also reducing traffic congestion on campus.

WeCar, a car sharing program created by Enterprise Rent-a-Car, gives students the opportunity to rent a Nissan Altima hybrid by the hour or by the day. That way they only pay for a car when they need it, and fewer residents may feel the need to keep cars on campus. Students only have to be a minimum of 18 years old with a valid driver's license, allowing them to bypass the typical age restrictions on car rentals.

"We anticipate that resident students will utilize this service rather than bring their own car to campus, which will reduce campus vehicle congestion as well as our environmental footprint,” said Angela Agnello, director of marketing and communications for Stony Brook's Faculty Student Association.

Stony Brook joins about 20 schools, including Tulane University in New Orleans, Washington University in St. Louis, Lipscomb University in Nashville, and the University of Missouri in Columbia, in offering the program. According to its website, a number of municipalities and private companies in 17 states also participate.

Students who heard about the program thought it was a good idea, but that its popularity would depend on cost and availability. Jessica McCabe, 20, is a resident student from Brooklyn who liked the idea.

"They can rent the car to go to the mall or go to jobs off-campus,” she said.

Sitara Waheed, 19, said using the program would depend on how much it cost.

"It would be really useful so I don’t have to pay full price to buy a car," Waheed said.

Marina Hennedy, also 19, said the program could potentially make weekends at Stony Brook more fun by giving students a way to more easily leave campus. And Jansi Damarla, 20, forsees everyday errands becoming a little easier with access to cars on campus.

"I need to go to Target and Pathmark all the time and I don’t want to take the buses every time," Damarla said.

Group to Review All Funded Clubs' Mission Statements

On the heels of threats of a lawsuit by the campus group Young Americans for Freedom over funding issues, a student government representative said Friday that YAF has undertaken its own review of all club constitutions and mission statements to make sure USG is in compliance with its own policy of not funding redundant organizations.

"That’s what [YAF is] doing now, looking into club constitutions and mission statements," said David Mazza, USG vice president of communications and public relations.

Young Americans for Freedom said on a website devoted to its mission that it "has been trying to get recognized on campus for the better part of a year," and was denied funding at a recent USG meeting. According to USG bylaws, a club is only eligible for funding after it has been recognized for three semesters.

However, Doug Smith, president of The Conservative Society for Action: Next Generation, distributed press releases accusing the administration of leftist leanings and suppressing conservative values.

"This administration is denying funding to their club using the tactic that it is simply an extension of the 'College Republicans,'" Smith said. "Young Americans for Freedom has been a nationally recognized college student organization since 1960."

University spokeswoman Lauren Sheprow said Smith was misrepresenting the facts.

"The administration recognizes this group as a club. The university assists this roup in putting together functions and activities," she said. "...In terms of funding, the USG determines how funding is allocated, the university does not. It’s not administrative funding."

Mazza said USG has a budget of approximately $1.5 million for the funding of student clubs and activities, drawn from a mandatory fee of $94.25 per student. Approximately 160 clubs receive funding from the student government,

Campus TV Station Closes

The USG Senate also voted to shut down SBU-TV, its closed-circuit television station, as it develops new approaches to multimedia operations.

Mazza said the TV station cost about $35,000 a year to run, as it was staffed by a paid professional, but was only viewable by about half the student body.

"Overwhelmingly, the Senate agreed that it was not worth having this closed circuit television station," he said, adding that the station had been established as an arm of USG and not as an independent campus media organization like The Statesman, The Press, The Independent or Think Magazine.

According to campus media reports, the move prompted some students to claim censorship on the part of USG.

"There was always censorship involved in that it was always an arm of the university, an arm of the student government," Mazza said. "They were never an independent media organization to begin with."

Editor's Note: This story was updated on Feb. 28 with a correction. It originally stated that USG was undertaking a review of all club mission statements and constitutions, but should have said the group Young Americans for Freedom was the party reviewing those documents.