Following the resignation of former Student Senate President Alex Grindstaff, Cody Long, a sophomore studying history and political science, has stepped up to fill the role.

Grindstaff’s departure has left the Student Senate in a state of transition, one that Long feels is in its final days.

“I’m excited that we’re out of this period of transition, or we’re getting out of this period of transition, and moving forward to actually debating real topics and becoming this body of advocacy that we’re supposed to be,” Long said.

Armed with a year of Student Senate experience under his belt, Long said he’s ready for the challenge and that he hopes to inspire his colleagues with a fresh perspective.

“I’m coming up with new ideas and right now my primary focus is inspiring the senators and getting them passionate, finding an issue that they’re willing to click on and drive to the wall,” Long said. “It’s a lot of internal reflection right now.”

As a sophomore taking on a major role in student government, Long acknowledges that there may be some who consider him inexperienced. Still, he said this past year in Student Senate has changed him and that his being elected pro tempore is testimony that others feel he is right for the job.

“I don’t think I’m any less qualified for the position,” Long said. “I served as chairman of government operations, president pro tempore which was elected by the senate with the expectation that if anything like this was to happen, I would fulfill the role of Student Senate president.”

Long said he participated in Student Government in high school and that working in government is something he’s always been interested in, whether it be foreign service, the U.S. Congress or state legislatures. According to Long, all it took to get him to apply for a position his freshman year at NC State was an exposé on Student Government in the Brickyard and a tour of Harrelson and the old student chambers.

While his time as Student Senate president has been short, Long said he has already faced some obstacles. The position has already become a big time commitment, one involving answering weeks’ worth of emails and making sure the senate continues to operate all while he learns the ropes of his new position.

“The ball was dropped in my court pretty unexpectedly in the early part of the semester,” Long said. “But now I think we’re getting out of this period of transition and we’re being able to advocate for our fellow students.”

Mitchell Moravec, a sophomore studying psychology, the Student Senate secretary and representative of CHASS, said Long has come in at a time when the senate is trying to figure out exactly what the role of Student Government should be on campus, and referred to it as a restructuring process. 

According to Moravec, Long has been trying to push forward through the restructuring period, which has caused some hesitation among senators.

“I wouldn’t say anyone is not enthusiastic [about Long],” he said. “I just think the restructuring period was a lot harder for some senators than others.”

Arianna Nasser, a senior studying biomedical engineering, the chair of tuition and fees and representative of the engineering department said Long has done a good job maintaining a high degree of impartiality despite what can at times be heated debates on the senate floor.

“These are issues we are passionate about. That’s why we’re part of senate,” Nasser said. “We [senators] are not always on the same page and we’re not always going to be.”

With Long filling the role of Student Senate president at a time of uncertainty in regards to what role senate has in governing the executive branch, Nasser said she will be paying attention to whether or not the relationship between the two changes.

“I’m interested to see if [the relationship] will change,” Nasser said. “The relationship has been great so far and I think we’re finally kind of finding a nice balance, but I’d be interested to see if that gets messed with at all.”

Even though the position came upon him unexpectedly, Long said he sees the opportunity as a long-term commitment and that he is doing more than just temporarily filling shoes.

“Quite honestly, I don’t see it as short-term because it’s an entire semester,” Long said. “As for what next year will bring me and the NC State community as a whole, I’m not entirely sure yet, but I’m looking forward to any opportunity that lies before me.”