Student Senate Presidential Candidates Joseph Lachance and Austyn Ramsey participate in an open debate. Photo by James McIntosh.
Student Senate presidential candidates and their running mates discussed issues such as mental health, sustainability and diversity at Tuesday night’s presidential debate.
In his opening statement, presidential candidate Joseph LaChance, who currently serves as the Senate’s director of treasury, cited several years of experience combined in the Senate between him and his running mate, Instruments Committee Chair and Public Safety Liaison John Bagley. LaChance also mentioned several policies the duo hopes to pass, including improving the Counseling Center resources, giving RAs menstrual products to hand out and pushing for increased parking with sustainability in mind.
Presidential candidate Austyn Ramsay is the current Student Organizations Chair in the Senate. Ramsay and her running mate, Senator Madyson Ramsay, stated their commitment to working closely with student organizations. Madyson Ramsay said that she hopes to ensure actual and definitive progress in the Senate as its vice president.
Austyn Ramsay spoke about her commitment to intersectionality and acceptance on campus. She said that she wants to be a leader to all students, including nontraditional students. She cited her personal experience as the reason for this.
“I went to community college,” Austyn Ramsay said. “I was in classrooms with students who were 30-plus years old. That gives me a very diverse background. It makes me realize that students and diversity on this campus is acceptance of people’s backgrounds. Like first-generation students, international students and service members.”
During the debate, LaChance spoke about his commitment to making the Senate more involved in student affairs and student organizations. According to LaChance, he plans to promote that senators can substitute one office hour each week to meet with a student organization.
When asked how she would deal with senators who are not doing their work, Madyson Ramsay said that she would listen to them, understand them and be fair. She said that her experience in different organizations has helped her grow her management skills.
When asked what the most important role of the vice president is, Bagley said that there are multiple important aspects to the position.
“I believe there are three pillars to the vice-presidential position,” Bagley said. “My first role as vice president is to advise the president; no one person can rule alone and their keys to rulership are often first laden with advisement. Secondary, would absolutely be keeping the feeling of the Senate where it is. Finally, keeping track of the organization as a whole.”
Both candidates endorsed environmentally-sustainable practices at URI. Austyn Ramsay said she hopes to implement many practices, such as biodegradable utensils, composting stations in dining halls and more recycling on campus. LaChance talked about instituting recycling at the Memorial Union as well as putting solar panels on more buildings.
When asked if the candidates would consider supporting the construction of a bar on campus, both said they would support this initiative if students supported it. Each candidate cited the fact that this could reduce drunk driving on campus and LaChance also highlighted that this could have financial benefits for the University.
The candidates also addressed issues of parking. While both presidential candidates agreed that parking is an issue on campus, their solutions were different. LaChance said that he will continue to work on the parking solutions that the current administration has worked on, such as carpool parking. On the other hand, Austyn Ramsay talked about researching ways to fix the problem and creating a better and more comprehensive plan.
In their closing statement, the Ramsays affirmed their commitment to supporting all students, including nontraditional students, being environmentally sustainable and combating food insecurity.
LaChance and Bagley’s closing statement also reinforced their proposed policies including supporting the Counseling Center, giving RAs menstrual products for students and reaching out to underrepresented student populations.
Elections will be held online on Feb. 26 and 27 through Campus Labs. Students can log in using their e-Campus username and Sakai password.