Three campaigns participated in a debate for Undergraduate Student Government president Sunday afternoon. Credit: Sydney Jones | Lantern Reporter

Around 30 people gathered in the Interfaith Room of the Ohio Union and more over Zoom Sunday afternoon to hear the policies and goals of the three Undergraduate Student Government campaigns that will appear on the ballot this week. 

The candidates focused on USG’s budget, ongoing issues within the organization and ways to improve both. They also highlighted representation and student engagement within USG, as well as safety and mental health policies. 

USG presidential candidates Michael Farquharson, running with Julian Rodgers, Bobby McAlpine with Madison Mason, and Michael Taylor with Ming Lei debated ahead of the election.  

Farquharson and Rodgers ended their election bid Sunday night due to “unsavory” comments Farquharson made a “couple of years ago,” Henry Levenberg — a first-year graduate student in learning technologies and Farquharson’s and Rodgers’ campaign manager — said. The Lantern is learning more. 

“We were unaware of the comments made by a member of our slate. We condemn these, and they do not reflect our personal views nor the views of the campaign,” Levenberg said. “Regardless, we wanted to issue an apology to any groups this has disproportionately affected, which includes groups that we ourselves are a member of.”

Voting for this year’s election will begin Monday at noon and close Wednesday at 11:59 p.m. Students can vote on USG’s website. 

Campaign basis

Farquharson, a third-year in mechanical engineering, and Rodgers, a first-year in film studies and marketing, have based their campaign on being “anti-USG,” hoping to stop internal spending in the organization. They said they were there for the free tuition and parking passes USG leaders get.

“I cannot think of any starting jobs in the field I’m in that would give me this kind of money [free tuition]. I also believe that USG spends money recklessly, and I would like to fix that,” Rodgers said. 

Taylor, a third-year in finance, and Lei, a third-year in finance and economics, said they are dedicated to giving back to students. With their Eagle Scout backgrounds, they believe they have the leadership skills to bring representation to the average student. Their main focus is on USG’s budget spending and pinpointing exactly what the student body’s responsibilities are by making the organization more efficient. They said there are too many things out of USG’s control.

“We are the normal student. We are here to advocate for the normal, average student,” Taylor said. 

McAlpine, a third-year in electrical and computer engineering who most recently served as senior director of engagement, and Mason, a third-year in political science who most recently served as senior director of issues, are the only pair from a USG background. McAlpine and Mason said they are focused on bridging the gap between the student body and USG. They are dedicated to ensuring USG uses its resources to help uplift students and is helping them balance college life. 

“The reason why we’re running is because we know we don’t have all the answers to every question on campus. But we want to use our resources to bring in those who do know,” McAlpine said.

USG’s budget

Rodgers said USG’s budget should be focused more on external spending as opposed to on itself.

“We don’t need all of that fund money. If you actually want to help students, why not actually give money to organizations that know what they are talking about?” Rodgers said. 

Rodgers and Farquharson claimed $12,000 were spent on custom jackets for USG members this year. According to USG’s 2022 Fall Budget, the Internal Operations Team spent $12,000 on sherpas for “USG Wide Apparel.”

Taylor and Lei also criticized USG’s current spending and want to focus on giving USG’s budget back to student organizations in a feasible manner.

“We are very qualified to make financial decisions seeing that we are both finance students. We have a lot of experience working with money to make responsible decisions,” Lei said. 

McAlpine and Mason,who have both served in USG for three years, agreed money should go back to students but defended the current USG budget. 

“As someone who is in USG, student activity fund fees go to student activities bar none,” Mason said. “We do not spend student activity money on anything internal.”

Student engagement and representation within USG

Taylor said he and Lei are “here to represent the average student,” and students should see a relatable leader. 

Taylor and Lei said they think the best way to have transparency and representation in USG is to make things easier to understand and encourage average students to participate in the organization.

“Right now, we use professional-level political language. We need to dial down and mold it more for the average student to try to figure out what they want to see,” Lei said. 

Farquharson and Rodgers argued USG needs to be more involved with students’ ongoing issues on campus. They said they felt USG is not in tune with the student body’s problems and using social media is the best way for USG to keep up.

 “People complain about things constantly. There are problems that are being exclaimed by the students. There are problems that you see all over social media that have not been addressed yet,” Rodgers said. 

McAlpine and Mason’s said their policies prioritize student organizations as a means of connecting with the student body. After reaching out to over 30 student organizations, they were able to gauge what issues students were having on campus. 

“I think surveys and reaching out to the general population is a great way to bring more people into the conversation. The average student deserves to be advocated for,” Mason said. 

McAlpine continued Mason’s sentiment.

“We have talked to over 800 students on The Oval. Madison and I are already doing this work. As president and vice president, we will not only work to continue these relationships but work to start new relationships,” McAlpine said.  

Safety 

When discussing safety on campus, McAlpine and Mason referenced the policies they have already started in USG, such as the “Lock your Ride” program to give students steering wheel locks. 

“We know that students on campus are feeling unsafe, and we want to give them the tools to feel as safe as possible,” McAlpine said. 

Taylor said he partook in the community engagement and well-being task force after a shooting occurred on campus his freshman year, in which he came up with quick solutions for campus safety. 

Taylor and Lei said they are ready to listen to students’ needs and act accordingly. 

“What does a great leader do? Listens to ideas and makes actions on them,” Taylor said.

Rodgers and Farquharson argued the best way they can promote bike safety is to remind people to ride on the street as opposed to on the sidewalk. 

Mental health

“Just last year, I lost a friend to suicide. The whole reason I decided to run is because we want to make sure that students are able to achieve their balance,” McAlpine said. “We see that USG has thousands of dollars that we can give directly back to students.”

McAlpine and Mason said it is hard to balance college and student life, but emphasized that it’s USG’s job to use its resources to help its students with mental health matters. The two are supported by student organizations — such as Mental Health Matters — and recognize the role USG plays in student resources like the Wilce Student Health Center. 

“I have been feeling a lack of support on campus, and I’m sure all of you have as well. I am running because I want to be intentional in using our resources to make Ohio State students better,” Mason said. 

Taylor and Lei again emphasized the importance of the boundaries of USG’s responsibilities and said it is not in USG’s control to handle issues in this matter but can communicate the resources available on campus.

“We want to make sure students know these things exist to get the help they need,” Lei said. 

Farquharson and Rodgers felt the best use of USG’s involvement with mental health is to give funding to more qualified resources to answer students’ questions. 

“Give the money to the people with the hands who know what to do with it because I’m going to be honest, I’m a film major, I don’t know what I’m doing,” Rodgers said. “There are people on campus already that are qualified.”