SGA presidential candidate Katherine Swanson said she’s upset that she’s running uncontested but hopes the student body will remain informed on the various initiatives she and the SGA plan to push for during their term.
Maryland Discourse, a student organization that facilitates debates on political issues at the University of Maryland, hosted a town hall event Monday night for executive candidates in this university’s Student Government Association elections. With the Bold Party running uncontested, the event served as a platform for students to ask future student leaders questions.
“We want students to be engaged regardless of whether it’s contested,” Swanson said. “I really am of the belief that contested elections bring about new ideas and bring about debate.”
About 40 students attended, about 15 of whom belonged to the Bold Party ticket. The candidates responded to questions regarding sexual assault prevention, changes to the dining plan and involvement with College Park, while junior Gabriella Davis, an individual studies major focusing on social entrepreneurship in Latin America, moderated the discussion.
Swanson said she had hoped for more students to be interested in the SGA candidates and initiatives.
“I know that’s not a fault of ours,” Swanson said. “There was no absence of questions, [but] I also want people to ask tough questions. … I want to know what I don’t know.”
Despite the turnout, Swanson said the event went well and allowed her to share some of her ideas and address student concerns.
Between last week’s debate and this town hall, Swanson said she thinks there has not been enough discussion of some key issues for the College Park community. Swanson also said she hoped to delve deeper into student concerns and her party’s plans in regards to diversity, sexual assault prevention and mental health resources.
Christian Knapp, CEO of Maryland Discourse, agreed with Swanson and said this was an opportunity to ask questions of group leaders. However, the event was originally scheduled as a debate, and Maryland Discourse changed the format when it became apparent that only one party was running, Knapp said.
“I think that when you have an uncontested race, it’s even more important to have that discourse,” the sophomore economics and government and politics major said.
The party also shared its plans to move forward with efforts to prevent sexual assault and continue this year’s initiatives, including a push for pre-published syllabi. The party will also address city-campus relations by having more events in conjunction with the city, said Perry Bloch, candidate for vice president of finance.
A.J. Pruitt, candidate for vice president of student affairs and a sophomore economics and government and politics major, also said the relationship can be further improved by introducing new students to the surrounding community through campus tours and summer orientation.
During the town hall, Residence Hall Association President Allison Peters asked the candidates to share definitions of shared governance and their ideas for improving connections between governing bodies.
Though Peters is a graduating senior majoring in government and politics and history, she said she felt it was important to continue engaging in these electoral discussions. After Peters graduates this May, junior Steve Chen, a biology and individual studies major, will assume her position as RHA president.
“Having been in a position of higher power, I kind of know what they should be looking at,” Peters said. “The issue of building a diverse campus and providing resources to everybody equitably is going to be really important, as is forcing the administration to hear student voices that they haven’t heard before.”
