TU Dream Team’s Gaelle Amazan and TUACTION!’s Kylie Patterson from faced off amid the Johnson & Hardwick crowd at the Temple Student Government presidential debate Tuesday.
The two candidates debated platform points, announced their different goals and answered questions from the audience.
Amazan cited that one of the main differences between TU Dream Team and TUACTION! is that TUACTION! focuses on dispersing information to get students involved. Amazan said all the information TUACTION! discusses is already there.
“There is enough information out there,” Amazan said. “The reason is the incentive, not the amount of information.”
Amazan said that all of TUACTION!’s platform points are things that are already in existence.
Patterson countered that it is not about apathy, but about opportunity. She said that students are not aware of all the resources available to them and need the information.
“We are just as innovative as they are,” Patterson said.
Another point of contention came up regarding TU Dream Team’s “Back to the four-year plan” that intends to address the fact that 64 percent of students graduate in six years or less. The plan calls for representatives from every major to make up a college council for every school or college.
Patterson said the real issue is the miscommunication between students and advisers. Many students are told to take twelve credits their first semester to ease into school, which sets them behind.
“Advisers are underestimating Temple students,” Patterson said.
Amazan responded that students should be held accountable. She said college councils will get students closer to their deans and will help build leadership.
Patterson pointed out that the idea of councils already exists in the TSG constitution, and said it is not an innovative idea. This came up when Elections Commissioner Alex Casale, who moderated the debate, asked Amazan about whether her ticket’s platform is too idealistic and contains realistic goals.
Amazan said the idea for college councils and the ticket’s preventative initiatives for academic integrity and drug and alcohol violations are realistic goals. She said people get too focused on her ticket’s name and lose sight of the platform.
“Dream is in the context of vision,” Amazan said. “If the name is the only issue with our platform, that’s fine with us.”
More debate occurred regarding TUACTION!’s plan to conduct weekly surveys of 100 students.
Casale asked whether this was possible given the fact that Patterson tried to conduct a survey about advising earlier this year and had limited results.
Alex Barnett, TU Dream Team’s candidate for vice president of services, also raised this issue at the vice presidential debate.
Patterson said the problem with responses was due to some senators lacking the commitment to go out and talk to people about filling out the survey.
“TUACTION! is committed to getting students involved,” Patterson said. “We are going to be right out there with you.”
The debate concluded with questions from the audience. The questions ranged from TSG’s stand on the ROTC program to advancing community relations to how Amazan and Patterson will work together after the election.
“Right now we’re doing an election and campaigning, but we don’t want to lose our friendship,” Patterson said. “We are stronger together than we are apart.”
Rebecca Hale can be reached at rebecca.hale@temple.edu.
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