By Sophia Oppedisano Editorial Staff Club representatives and Student Government Association members discussed opportunities for collaboration among clubs to foster inclusion and community on campus at a meeting Feb. 11. Vice President Cesar Matos called the club representative portion of the meeting to order and thanked the representatives for their hard work in contributing to the growth of their clubs. Matos then pivoted to discussing the “Big Budget” meeting for Fiscal Year 2026 which took place Feb. 10. The starting balance for FY26 is $419,480, with $361,207 being allocated and $58,273 remaining in unallocated funds. The changes from “Big Budget” were briefly discussed, including a financial cut from $15,000 to $13,500 for all Group Two clubs. Group Four clubs also saw a decrease from $2,000 to $1,700. Matos said Groups Two and Four “largely haven't used much of their funding up to this point. So in order to increase the efficiency of the money that is being allocated, we find that it's best to keep it in the unallocated budget.” Matos deferred to President Evelyn Campbell to discuss the changes for Group One organizations, which included a 2.96% increase for The Gatepost for their printing contract, as well as a 5.80% increase in the overall budget for WDJM. Campbell said the financial cuts for Groups Two and Four can be attributed to “if you don't use the money, you're going to lose the money. “A lot of the money that we have in the unallocated is used for projects on campus to make student life better,” she added. Campbell passed the floor back to Matos, who outlined the transition between financial groupings for clubs that will be transitioning to different groups. Matos moved on to the second portion of the club representative meeting, which included conversation amongst the representatives about “partnering” with each other. SGA wanted to utilize the conversation to “make sure that we all collectively have a space where we can feel heard and support from each other, as well as the campus community,” he said. Campbell opened up the floor for the club representatives to discuss any events they are planning and how other clubs can be involved. Alexis Schlesinger, the representative for both the Framingham State Activities Board (FSAB) and WDJM, said she is hoping to involve “as many people as possible” in FSAB’s annual Sandbox event May 9. “This would entail, if you are interested, we would reach out to you and ask if you would be willing to do a simple, on-theme activity that we are developing,” Schlesinger said. Schlesinger added she feels strongly about the potential for “cross-campus collaboration. “There's so many people in this room, and there's so many people on this campus, and I don't think that we realize how much we have in common,” she said. Tony Sims said he has been thinking about ways to get commuters more involved in organizations and how there needs to be more “visibility” and “accessibility” of clubs for commuters. Senator Alix Ayoub said collaborations between Groups One and Two and clubs in lower-ranking groups is important to promote the names of smaller groups to the commuter student base. Returning to the issue of event promotion, Fashion Club President Daniel Moore promoted this year’s Fashion Show May 2 and asked if the Art Club and Cosplay Club would be interested in collaborating on decorations, design, and runway events for the show. Yair Rachmany, the President of Outing Club, concluded the conversation by inviting clubs to collaborate with them if they are looking to plan an off-campus trip. During the president’s report, Campbell announced a webinar called “Knowing Your Rights,” which will focus on immigration laws and refugee rights. She encouraged all SGA members to attend on Feb. 19. Campbell’s other announcement pertained to FSUPD’s self-defense training, which will take place Feb. 17 and Feb. 24. In the absence of Student Trustee Jeremy McDonald, Campbell reported on his behalf. The student trustee report outlined the ongoing SGA textbook drive. “It's a free program to use. You can just take the textbook and then return it, or if you want to keep it. It's just supposed to be an open education resource for students,” Campbell said. She added that McDonald is working on an “internship log” in an attempt to change the current internship policy. Campbell read a statement from McDonald which read, “I believe that more internships should receive credit directly proportional to the number of hours.” Secretary Jazmany Reyes outlined the potential collaboration between Fashion Club and Art Club for the Fashion Show. Reyes added that if clubs express any need for guidance when it comes to collaborating, he would be happy to assist them. Treasurer Khoa Bùi said he has set up a meeting with the American Sign Language Club to discuss funding requests for multiple events totaling $810. He said this meeting was tabled for the next FinCom meeting. Additionally, Bùi said he had a meeting with SGA’s financial advisor, Kayleigh Novac, to get “more information on the remaining budget of clubs in Group Two and Four, so that I have this on hand in case those groups have any questions regarding their budget or change in placement.” Events Coordinator Alix Ayoub said she is reaching out to the McAuliffe Center and other clubs to discuss potential event collaborations. She said her focus for the rest of the semester is going to be collaborative events. “I think it's a really good way to increase publicity for both sides, and also to increase how many people will actually attend,” she said. Campbell delivered Diversity and Inclusion Officer Ana-Julia Riberio’s report on Culture Week in collaboration with Sodexo and the Center for Inclusive Excellence. Riberio said she is hopeful Culture Week can be held March 24-28. Additionally, Campbell said Riberio “has been working with Jesse Edwards, the DEI Officer for the City of Framingham, to introduce a new program aimed at supporting minority student groups on campus.” Publicist Jaelynn Moon said she “finalized the social media strategy for Instagram,” and has been researching “different ways that we can go on TikTok and market to the incoming freshmen.” Advisor Rachel Spezia said nominations are open for the Excellence in Student Leadership Awards and the Phenomenal Woman Award. She encouraged SGA's attendance at both award ceremonies later in the spring. [ Editor’s Note: Alexis Schlesinger is a Photos & Design Editor and Tony Sims is a Staff Writer for The Gatepost. ]