Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Windmills, eliminating doors and the lifespan on swimming pools were discussed at last night’s University Daily Kansan Student Senate Debate at Woodruff Auditorium in the Kansas Union.
Student Senate presidential and vice presidential candidates from coalitions United Students, Connect KU and Students of Liberty participated in the Kansan-sponsored debate. Candidates answered student questions submitted via YouTube, e-mail and from the audience.
One of the major issues of the debate was creating a more sustainable campus.
Eric Hyde, Lawrence sophomore and vice presidential candidate for Students of Liberty, said Pratt Community College built three windmills on its campus to help with a $200,000 deficit. He said the deficit was resolved in one year. He said the University of Kansas could be a more eco-friendly university but sometimes politics slow the process down.
“One of the worst things you can have for ‘greening’ is politics mixed in with it,” Hyde said.
KU student senate groups, from left, Connect, Students of Liberty and United Students debate in the Kansas Union on Tuesday, March 25, 2008. The president and vice president candidates answer questions from students via youtube, e-mail and the audience.
Adam McGonigle, Wichita sophomore and presidential candidate for United Students, said one of its platforms would focus on making campus more energy-efficient and said the platform would be released in the next week.
Connect KU said it focused on a more sustainable campus by cleaning up Potter Lake. Jason Oruch, Plano, Tex., junior, and vice presidential candidate for Connect KU, said the lake was a staple of the University. He said years ago, Potter Lake was a gathering place for students, much like Wescoe Beach. He said there used to be entertainment shows at the lake as well.
“We want to make it more sustainable but also more of a hangout,” Oruch said.
Austin Kelly, Lawrence junior and presidential candidate for Connect KU, said there were many problems at the University and Connect KU was working right now to fix those. He said one way his coalition would solve problems would be to get input from all students. If elected, he would take all the doors off their hinges so everyone would be welcome all the time.
One of the YouTube questions asked United Students why students should pay for a pool that would not be finished until current students had graduated. Building a pool at the Student Recreation Fitness Center to replace the one at Robinson Gymnasium was the first platform of United Students.
McGonigle said that the average lifetime of a swimming pool is 25 years, according to the director of the Recreation Center. He said that by the time his proposed pool would be completed, the pool in Robinson Gymnasium would be twice that age.
McGonigle said that student athletes should be able to swim in a better pool and students working out shouldn’t have to work their schedule around the few hours that the current pool is open.
“If students want to run and swim they can do it at the same place,” McGonigle said.
The problem of higher student fees was another issue candidates discussed.
McGonigle said United Students was committed to keeping fees down. Kelly said that his freshman year, he paid $287 per semester in student fees. Now students pay almost $378.
Adam Wood, Lawrence junior and Students of Liberty presidential candidate, said fees were already too high and he didn’t support increases.
“The word that comes to mind is no,” he said.
Wood said that if he was elected, there would be no fee increases ever, and that fee increases were actually tuition increases.
Another question asked why students should think they were fairly represented by these candidates. All six candidates are white males.
Wood said that whether a candidate was a man or a woman was irrelevant, but what mattered was what their ideas were.
Kelly said Connect was running with senators from China, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia and Austria, so the coalition was not all one kind of person. All three coalitions said they supported the Multicultural Education Fund, which gives money to increase multicultural events at the University.
“Does it really matter who the president and vice president are if it’s Student Senate who is spending our money?” asked a student on YouTube.
Candidates responded that the president and vice president hold leadership positions and also have more specific duties. The president has veto power and can say no to any legislation that passes through full Senate. Senate can overturn a veto with two-thirds support. The vice president runs Senate meetings and can make decisions on how legislation is heard. Both elected people also hire an executive staff that is paid with student fees and also appoint chairs for committees.
Look for future articles about platforms mentioned in Tuesday’s debate and other platforms of each coalition. More profiles of the students running for Student Senate will also be featured in the coming weeks.
— Edited by Matt Hirschfeld
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Comments
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
ashley, what are you referring to?
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
"If elected, he would take all the doors off their hinges so everyone would be welcome all the time"
Wow Austin! Quite an improvement from earlier this year when you had newspaper covering the window of your door!!
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
Come on ilovelamp. I don't think he was actually advocating taking the doors off.
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
I think they really should take the doors off. He said he would if elected and if he doesn't do it now, I will feel betrayed.
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
I agree. Austin should take the door of his office. So should everyone in senate too.
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
http://www.kansan.com/users/ilovelamp/comments/
All of these comments seem to be slanted and derogatory. We don't really need flame wars or trolling, just good relevant conversation dude.
Calm down, be civil. Please?
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
I agree, the only comments that make this website are completely slanted. I'd be interested in hearing from someone who doesn't have affiliations for once.
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
I enjoyed this debate. Kudos and props to UDK, KUJH, and KJHK. This is how you get students involved and interested in Senate. Too often do students get left out of the loop, but that is changing.
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
... though I do think it would be fair and more interesting if the candidates were allowed to debate with one another and respond to their answers.
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
Students of Liberty ripped United Students a new one in the debate. Austin, the excellent speaker he is, held himself very well. Wood and I enjoyed ourselves. The fight is on and I'll be sure to swing less at Connect but I'll still swing if you know what I mean.
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
I don't think "taking the door off the office" really means anything. The problem is not accessibility, but rather apathy caused by a lack of choice.
Before Students of Liberty was in the race, the argument was, "what do we spend our money on?" This has slightly changed now to, "do we really need to spend this money?"
I think this is a monumental paradigm change and this will be an historic election. People can steal our platform issues, however I think that would show the students who exactly has new ideas, and who steals them.
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
I think the comment about taking the doors off the office is about the fact that many exec staff members (Adam McGonigle especially) sit in their offices with their doors closed talking about the United Students campaign and gossiping instead of doing their jobs.
I would agree that the physical doors themselves aren't the problem. But the closed doors are part of a greater attitude of not caring or being accountable to the students who pay their salaries.
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
This article (and this campaign, for that matter) are supposed to be about the issues, so don't contribute to personal attacks. That ruins it for the rest of us who are trying to be informed about the stuff that matters. Let's try and make this a positive situation for all involved - make the campaign "issue" oriented and leave the other stuff out of it. Be the mature college students you're supposed to be.
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
Good job, KUJH, KJHK, and UDK. For once, students actually showed up at the presidential debate. Hopefully next year the turn out will be even greater. Adam Wood is right, this will be a historic election at KU, and hopefully students will focus on the viable issues that these coalitions are focusing on, not on the lies and slander that supporters of both coalitions spread around campus about the other.
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
Sjschlag - there are actually 3 coalitions, so using the word "both" probably isn't right. No biggie though.
JConnor - if Adam McGonigle's door is always closed, how do you know what he's talking about on the other side??? Sounds like a load of bull to me.
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
What else could be so sensitive that Mr. McGonigle would need to shut his door?
Platforms discussed in Student Senate debate
Sometimes people like their doors shut because it's noisy out in the main room, making it hard to concentrate.
Just sayin...
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