Student Senate holds debates ahead of upcoming election

On Wednesday, March 21, the Ohio University Student Senate hosted its first debate of the year for its upcoming election. The debate began with questions for the presidential candidates, which were then followed by questions for the entire ticket to answer. 

The Ohio U Student Senate election consists of the President, Vice President, and Treasurer. These duties are important for making decisions to represent all students attending Ohio U, and they are key in giving students a voice to be heard. Each role in the Senate has specific criteria that should be adequately met for the needs of students.

The president of the Senate is the key to making sure the Senate is functioning efficiently and effectively. They are responsible for running each meeting for the body and having a clear voice in terms of decisions proposed. With this, they are the supervisors of approval and control procedures when action is needed, as well as taking responsibility for necessary committees. 

In the 2024 Student Senate election, the candidates for president are Treasurer Reagan Farmer, Vice President Isaac Davis, and Sen. Kiandra Martin. 

Treasurer Reagan Farmer:

Farmer currently holds the position of Treasurer in the Senate. She is an Honors Tutorial College student studying political science, along with minors in psychology and sociology, a certificate in political communication, and war and peace studies. Farmer is also involved in serving as a democracy fellow for the Center for Community Engagement at Ohio U. Farmer is committed to leading by example and maintaining a diligent work ethic. The values Farmer puts first in her work are dedication and communication, believing these are critical to being successful and efficient as president. 

Reiterating the importance of hard work, Farmer stated, “If you're not showing what it looks like to be an effective student leader, and what it's like to be a hard worker and dedicated to your craft, no one's going to listen to what you're holding them accountable, expect them to understand those things.” 

In presidency, Farmer plans on improving attentiveness to the needs and experiences of students to accomplish desired results. She makes it clear that there is no one goal to achieve and to listen and collaborate. “At the end of the day, I just want to achieve a strong, functioning governing body that represents our students at the highest level,”  Farmer said.

Vice President Isaac Davis:

Davis presently serves the position of vice president in the Senate. He is a political science and history major. Davis is involved in a variety of different student organizations, such as the Ohio Honors program and the Order of Omega. He is also vice president of the Interfraternity Council and the recording secretary for Phi Kappa Psi. Davis’ specific interest in running is to show how to live in service to others, serving is how to make a difference, and hopes to leave as positive an impact as he can.

Davis holds values for his presidency at a moral standard. Having integrity and communicating are essential in his approach. Stating the values important to him, he believes honesty, courage, and accountability are essential to getting the job done. Davis claims, “Accountability is the linchpin for everything; if you don't hold students accountable, especially Student Government members, it's just going to show to the rest of the student body, that we're not holding ourselves to a higher standard and making sure that we are here for their interest, not our own.” 

Sen. Kiandra Martin:

The third presidential candidate, running on her own ticket for the upcoming election, is Kiandra Martin. Martin is majoring in sociology and criminology with a minor in African American studies. She is currently the Black Student Affairs Senator for Student Senate, and she also works as the Special Events Co-ordinator for the Black Student Cultural Programming Board and Variant Magazine.

Martin’s advocacy is predominantly student-based. Although Martin does not have a specific action plan, she plans to get into a position to be able to hear the needs of every student on campus. Adding to this, she stated, “To vote for me is to vote for you.” 

Martin maintains herself through her character. She believes to be personable and able to effectively communicate with anyone she comes across and explained how helpful this is in executing the needs of others. In presidency, Martin chooses to keep transparency in her position, and to be a “student for all students.” 

Following the president position is the vice president of the Senate. As VP, the responsibilities are duties delegated by the president. Along with actions for commissions and working directly with and supporting each person in the Senate. The VP is also obligated to fill empty seats at meetings and ensure that rules followed with votes are held accountable and used to a moral degree.

Running for vice president of the Senate are two students, Dan Gordillo and Ayshni Tandon.

Commissioner Dan Gordillo:

Gordillo is currently the Governmental Affairs Commissioner of the Senate. He majors in political science and linguistics, with the addition of minors in history, French and Spanish, along with a certificate in German studies. Gordillo prides himself on his love of languages, stating: ”I hope that my love for language can also translate to openness and transparency during my time as your Vice President.” 

Gordillo is also very involved in organizations here at Ohio U. He is the president of the German Club, Vice President of the French Club and Chess Club, as well as the scholarship chair for the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity. Gordillo has been involved in student government before running for Student Senate in his hometown. He intends to ensure efficient functioning in our government to give students something to feel proud to be a part of. 

Vice Commissioner Ayshni Tandon:

Tandon holds the position of Minority Affairs Vice Commissioner for Student Senate. She is also the Vice President for the Political Science and Pre-Law Majors Association and is involved in the Phi Alpha Delta Pre-Law Fraternity. Tandon is running for Vice President to make a difference for students and to make it known that someone cares and is willing to listen and serve. 

Tandon expresses her take on inclusivity and the importance of compromise, stating, “If something is necessary to do, the best way to collaborate with students and other commissioners is to make sure they know what has to be done if we're going to make students feel included if we're going to make them feel respected and accepted.”  

The final candidates running in the Senate election are for treasurer. The duties of the treasurer, similar to those of the Vice President, are delegated by the president. The role of the treasurer specifically includes supervising all financial and budgetary needs in the Senate, like submitting budget requests and reports, reviewing charges and invoices, working to form new budgets, and making recommendations when needed. 

Students running for Treasurer of the Senate this year are Johnny Susany and Hunter Price.

Vice Commissioner Johnny Susany:

Susany’s position is Vice Commissioner of Governmental Affairs. He is in the Honors Tutorial College here at Ohio U, studying Political Science and earning certificates in Italian and Environmental Studies. He also serves as the secretary of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity and as the president and founder of the CIAO Italian Club. 

Susany explains, “I am running for treasurer so that I can give back to the OU community. My time as a bobcat has been nothing short of amazing, and I want all my fellow students to feel the same sense of pride and love for this community as I do.” 

Hunter Price:

Price was not present for the debate on March 21, but was present for the debate this past Wednesday.

Price is running as Treasurer for the Senate in this election. He is currently involved in Phi Kappa Psi as vice president. Price is a finance major and has experience within this field, though he has never been involved with the Senate before. Price is running for treasurer to shed more light on student government. He plans to preserve the ethical standards of this seat while expanding senators' engagement within the student body. 

Student Senate members use tickets to increase their audience, as well as host events like Pride Week, Take Back the Night, the Period Party, or Finals Fest. These events help to include students on campus to better share their ideas or concerns with Senate members. Tickets for this year’s Student Senate election are Unity and the Davis-Tandon-Price Ticket.

The individual candidates are included on the following two tickets, except for Kiandra Martin, who is running on her own ticket. 

The Unity Ticket:

Farmer, Gordillo, and Susany, along with Luke Vannus, Aidan Kirk, and Landen Hensel, are running in representation of the Unity ticket. Vannus is running for SAC delegate, and Kirk and Hensel are up for Residence Life Senators. They were unable to attend the debate held last Wednesday. 

The Unity ticket places importance on the support of organizations on campus, as well as the support of students as individuals to build a more inclusive community on campus. A post by Farmer explains, “We are going to ensure that all members of the senate are held accountable to their duties and are representing students at the highest level.”  

Unity’s main focus is to increase funding for student organizations. They are attempting to change the lack of funding that has been seen by the Senate over the past few years. Tending to the issue, Farmer is working to create new rules to ration out leftover Senate funds to go toward the SAC (Senate Appropriations Committee) budget. 

Similarly to the BORG ticket, Unity plans to decrease the amount of costs for students, like laundry or any on-campus expenses. They stated that, even if tuition becomes more expensive, it could be effective in the long run since that could be aided; rather than pocket costs.

The Unity ticket also plans to bring back the Bobcat Grievance Form. This form instills a steady platform for students’ voices to be heard at any time, rather than strictly at Town Halls or speak-outs. Allowing this to be put into action, allows Treas. Farmer and her ticket to hear from all students on all issues.

Another focal point for Unity’s mission is to increase safety on campus. Farmer and her ticket plan to solve the lighting issues on campus, more specifically the sidewalk lights on South Green. Additionally, they intend to propose the enactment of AEDs (Automated External Defibrillators) in residence halls to ensure emergency aid can be given within the first few minutes of an accident. 

The Davis-Tandon-Price Ticket:

Davis, Tandon, and Price announced their candidacy through their ticket BORG. Their platform is: “Bobcats deserve better, Bobcats deserve B.O.R.G.: Better dorm amenities, open governance, reducing barriers, and great times.” 

They are using this tenant to propose new opportunities for the students on campus. Starting with Residence Halls, adding free cleaning supplies for communal use, using flex points for laundry rooms, and changing the guest prices for students during Halloween Weekend. Further, pushing to increase accessibility for wheelchairs and adding noise-canceling headphones in the library for students who need them. Davis and his ticket are also working to encourage a 3-strike system for parking tickets before being fined, along with warnings for noise complaints before a complete shutdown. 

In support of the students on campus to the best of their ability, Davis and Tandon showed transparency in their communication with the student body to be able to hear everyone, make connections, and make a place where everyone can be included.

Along the lines of their mission for inclusivity, the BORG ticket shoots to increase accessibility on campus. They noted the large number of parking tickets students receive, sometimes the last resort is parking no matter what. Due to the issues the campus has with wheelchair accessibility, they hope to implement new policies to adapt to change.

Questions asked to the ticket from the debate on Wednesday spoke of concerns about the relationship between Vice Commissioner Tandon and Vice President Davis. Tandon and Davis both claimed that their relationship would not get in the way of any professional boundaries inside their work for the Senate and should a split happen, the Senate would still be able to run smoothly. Davis said, “We would definitely be able to maturely and efficiently maintain a good working relationship and run the Senate.” 

The Student Senate election this year is on Tuesday, April 2. To submit your vote for the candidate you would like to elect, go to the link sent to your Ohio email. It will be sent on Tuesday and will be open until 11:59 p.m. that evening. Every vote counts!