Two Tickets Face Off in Temple Student Government Debate

BY: CAITLIN CHECKETT

The first Temple Student Government debate kicked off in Room 217 of the Howard Gittis Student Center.

Competing TSG tickets Activate TU and Connect TU came together for the first of two debates on Thursday, May 23, in the Student Center. Julie Christie from The Temple News and Taggart Houck from Temple Update moderated the event. The debate, which lasted from 5-7 p.m., focused on the main platforms of both parties.

Each team had one minute to answer every question asked by the moderators, followed by a 30 second rebuttal by the opposing team, if needed.

Topics discussed included student affairs and financial services, LGBT inclusivity and transparency, sexual assault and walking escorts, and the Temple football stadium.

Activate TU’s platform of “Reform, Engage, Activate” includes multiple ideas of improving existing programs, such as Women Organized Against Rape and the Walking Escort Program. They spoke directly about enhancing access to necessary student resources and accommodating the entire Temple body.

Kayla Martin, Activate TU’s candidate for Vice President of Services, talked about the importance of learning the history of Philadelphia so Temple students can respect the community more.

“We are already connected as Temple students here in Philadelphia,” Martin said.  “We need to take it to the next step and activate the relationships that we already have here to make sure Temple is the best that it can possibly be within the community.”

Connecting TU has similar ideas of developing programs and resources for groups like the LGBT community and international students. Their ideas also focus on improving the financial aid process and strengthening overall community relations.

Shiven Shah, Connecting TU’s candidate for Vice President of External Affairs, described his party’s main goal for office.  

“In order to enhance your Temple experience, we want to connect you with the resources you need to ensure that your time here at Temple is perfect,” Shah said.

Both tickets argued over the Zero Waste and Litter Cabinet, the Good Neighbor Policy, the TU Alert system, and the creation of the Temple football Stadium in North Philadelphia.

Students can follow the rest of the campaign on Twitter with updates from both sides. Voting will be open on April 4th and 5th via uvote.temple.edu.