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The three student body presidential candidates came head to head on Thursday for their only debate before the election today. Kate O’Brien, Dallas Phillips and Eli Young were given an hour to answer questions, defend their views and give a final statement.
All three candidates agreed that a huge part of being student body president was visibility. O’Brien said that her goal was to make the role of president and the Student Government offices more open to students.
“It’s not just an entity in the Union basement,” O’Brien said.
Young said that the president cannot function without being known.
“It’s excruciatingly important to be out and about. If the student doesn’t know who the president is, then the president has nothing,” Young said.
Phillips said that visibility is also his top priority.
“The number one role of the president is to be approachable, To be noticed,” Phillips said.
The ever-present issue of parking also was discussed. Phillips said change would be difficult due to the money made by parking tickets.
“I still think parking can be tweaked. Unfortunately, we are an underfunded school,” Phillips said.
O’Brien said the first step to solving the problem was to recognize what bothers students about parking. “What specifically is the problem? We need to more clearly define it and then solve it,” O’Brien said. “One way to correct this is to find out from the students.”
Young said that the problem and its solution were clear.
“I think the problem is both location and the number of spaces. Given the extreme in climate weather here, this is an issue,” he said.
Young said one solution would be to eliminate some of the visitor and perimeter parking spaces to make more spots available to residents.
The candidates also had different views on how to make sure the opinions of the students are being heard. Phillips said that the entire General Student Senate needs to play a part in the process.
“It’s not just the president’s goal to reach the students. It is also a job of the student senate. It’s unacceptable that students don’t know where their money goes. It needs to be changed,” Phillips said.
O’Brien said that maintaining a dialogue with students would ensure their needs were met.
“The key to any good relationship is communication. We need to open those lines. The president of Student Government needs to be the one to make that effort,” she said.
Young, however, said that he already knows what the concerns of students are, as he received and posted many issues on his Web site.
“I have been listening to students. You need to work with them to understand that perspective,” he said.
O’Brien said that talking to students in classes could help spark interest in the General Student Senate.
“We need to expand on educating students on Student Government. If we can go to classes, students will become aware,” O’Brien said.
“The problem with classes is that you lecture people, and you don’t get enough feedback. You need to go to places and talk with individuals,” Young said.
Phillips and O’Brien both said that the key to success was not making promises but listening to students,
“I’m not going to make promises. Students should tell me what they need,” Phillips said.
“While they need to see action, what would be worse is coming in with promises not being accomplished,” O’Brien said.
Young said that a strategy is necessary for success.
“You can never guarantee what you can accomplish, but you have to do something more than just listening,” Young said. “You need to come in with goals and a plan.”
Phillips said that a plan out of tune with student needs would not succeed.
“If you’re pushing the wrong goals, then they won’t listen,” Phillips said.
The candidates all agreed that the health and safety of students was a top priority.
“My entire platform is based on the health of students,” Young said.
He said one issue that needed to be addressed was when classes continued in spite of inclement weather.
“A final is a wonderful thing, but it’s not worth anyone’s life,” Young said.
Phillips said that if it is unsafe for the bus to travel, it is not safe for commuters either.
“I’d like to look at the fact that if the BAT is canceled, we shouldn’t have school,” Phillips said.
O’Brien said that it was everyone’s job to make sure students are never in danger.
“The administration and students need to be in agreement as to what is safe. I think now we are not on the same page,” she said.
When his making final statement, Phillips said that the apathy towards Student Government needed to change. He noted the crowd at Memorial Union and noted that few were even watching the debate.
“There are not a lot of people here who know what’s going on,” he said
Phillips said that despite his lack of experience, he would be a strong leader.
“I’ve no experience with Student Government before. I don’t think you need to,” he said.
Young closed by saying that while he had a plan, it was what the students had asked for.
“It’s truly important to come here with an agenda. It’s not my agenda,” Young said.
O’Brien ended the debate by stating her promise to bring Student Government and the student body closer together.
“We need to put students back in Student Government,” she said.
Today is the election for student body president and vice president. Students may vote on their FirstClass desktops.
