Seventeen freshman candidates voiced their views to a small audience in the Senatorial candidates forum Tuesday night at Hotung Caf?©.
There are eight open spots for freshman senators on the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate. Each candidate gave a brief introductory statement and answered questions from the audience. About thirty people filled Hotung, a mixture of TCU Senate members and interested freshman.
After the forum, the three candidates for the TCU Judiciary answered questions from the audience. Freshmen Kenny Bain and Daniel Mandell, and sophomore Phil Berenbroick are running for one open spot.
Voting will take place this Friday and will be done electronically through freshmen's e-mail accounts.
Many of the candidates presented similar platforms and goals. Popular issues included extending dining hall hours, opening Hogdon take-out on weekends, hastening the response time of Tufts Facilities employees, and adding paper towels to dorm bathrooms. But most expressed general ideas and did not give detailed plans on how to set them into action.
"It's hard for freshmen to really take a stand on issues, because they don't really know them," said Senate Co-Treasurer Nick Abraham. "The forum is effective for gauging people's philosophy before they take office."
Many of the candidates have experience in student government; others have worked on the state or national level. Each candidate made sure to say their name as often as possible, hoping they look familiar on Friday's ballot. Some came up with slogans based upon their names. Others were more creative, like Rebecca Francis, who composed a rap from the letters of her name to explain her viewpoints. Brandon Maltesh repeated his name for nearly thirty seconds.
Current senators said they were impressed with this year's candidates. "They seem more qualified this year," said sophomore Senator Pritesh Gandi. "They have a good grasp of ideas."
The questioning period tested candidates' speaking skills and ability to think on their feet, with audience members posing provocative questions. Two of the three questions were asked by current TCU senators. Only the third was asked by a freshman.
Only freshmen are eligible to vote for their representatives.
One question dealt with the possibility of using extra money, intended for Tufts organizations, for relief efforts in New York City and Washington, DC. The question was in response to a controversial decision last year to send Senate money to earthquake relief in India. Maltesh said that Student Activities Fee funds are intended to be spent at Tufts, and should remain at the University.
Another question dealt with how the Senate should deal with hate crimes on campus. All candidates agreed that hate crimes and hate speech have no place at Tufts, but offered different methods to prevent them. "The TCU Senate should enlighten the student body in order to get rid of intolerance," candidate Mike Fleischman said. Many candidates cited education as a solution. Others said that forums for student discussion, extra funding to cultural organizations, and creating a charity to support the cause would help.
After the forum, some in attendance said it was not the best way for students to get acquainted with the candidates. "The forum format should be changed," TCU President Eric Greenberg said. "You just hear the same answers from the same people."
Candidates agreed. "Anything with this many people is hard because there aren't too many views to express," freshman Adam Koeppel said. The poor attendance disappointed candidates as well. "I'm disappointed more students didn't show up," John Gold said. "It's better to communicate with more students. These forums need to be publicized more."
The lack of student participation was a recurring theme among the candidates. Many saw it as the root of many problems on campus. Some criticized the lack of a central information organization, pointing to chalkings and posted flyers around campus as not insufficient and unorganized.
Students who attended the forum were pleased with what they heard. "The candidates represent us really well," said freshman Abieyuwa Ighodaro. "It was good to hear their points of view. They're all so passionate."
