This debate was between Taquan Dewberry and his running mate Adam Womble and Isaac Carreno and his vice president Anil Gordon.

The first question was: Chancellors play a critical role in setting the tone and direction of a university. With a new chancellor soon taking office, what do you see as the greatest opportunities for growth during this transition? What potential challenges do you anticipate for students within this transition, and how would you address them as Student Body President?

Carreno answered first, saying “The role of the student body president is to advocate for students at the most external levels. The Student Body President sits on the board of trustees and makes sure that the highest level concerns are advocated for to the chancellor, the new chancellor, coming in will bring with them a new culture, a new administrative culture at NC State.”

He said, “I think it’s so critical for student government to take advantage of this and have a strong leader. This means that student government can swoop in and tell that new chancellor the importance of student advocacy, by having a good impression, a strategic relationship, we will define student advocacy and protect it on campus for years to come.”

Dewberry then answered, saying “I think far too often in student government, we’ve seen us take a stance of neutrality when it comes to the chancellor and administrative relationships. That does not have to be the case. If you look at our organization’s history, it was built on strong, dedicated advocacy. It was built on us taking the stand, a stronger and great relationship with the chancellor does not mean neutrality, it’s time for our students to take a stand and let the administration that we can disagree and still work cooperatively, together. It does not mean that we have to sit by and let whatever the administration say go.”

“We can disagree and we can still work together,” he said, continuing, “We want to bring in a new point of view for leadership. We want to let people know that leadership does not mean placating the university. It does not mean agreeing on every single thing. It means taking a stand representing the student body.”

Then came the second question: The first days in office set the tone for an administration. Beyond symbolic gestures, what specific actions will you take on day one to establish your priorities, build momentum, and address urgent student concerns? Who will you meet with, what initial topics will you cover, and how will you ensure that your administration delivers actionable results that students can feel from the start?

Gordon answered first saying, “On day one of our administration, we will sign Executive Order One, which establishes the Commission on Student Support.”

“There should be direct feedback channels that are accessible to students. The student government website should be completely overhauled so it’s directly accessible to students. No longer will you have to pursue between branches, click different links just to get your voice heard. It should be front and center on the first page of our website,” said Gordon. 

He also said, “Additionally, it’s important to recognize graduate students at this university as a graduate student, tuition and fees are among our primary concerns. There are significant issues surrounding housing insecurity…we need to think about innovative solutions in which we go to policy makers and propose these solutions. Isaac and I bring that policy experience. We have served in legislators’ offices, we have met with city council members. We know how to bring that advocacy, and that’s exactly what we’re going to bring in on day one.”

Womble then shared his answer, saying, “Day one of the Dewberry Womble administration, we are fighting to fix one of the biggest problems,” which he says is food insecurity. He says they want to get a C-Store at Wolf Ridge on Centennial, “So when The Oval closes, if you want, you can go down to it and get a hot meal that can heat up in your dormitory or even at Hunt Library.”

He also said “When we developed our campaign team, we actively asked people, what do you want to see? One of the issues that immediately came up was sexual assault.” To address this he says,“Day one and week one, work with the current Markert Correno administration and the SG Instagram to create a program that advertises and addresses the issues regarding sexual assault and the resources this campus provides to students.”

The next question was: This year, Student Government came under increased scrutiny due to Student Body President Allison Markert’s vetoing of Resolution 29 advocating for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. What lessons did you learn from that, and how would you handle a similarly public facing and controversial piece of legislation that is widely supported by students but may not align with your personal beliefs or the beliefs of other campus stakeholders? 

Dewberry answered first saying, “The first thing I learned, I think everyone should’ve learned from that, is that our number one priority is to listen to student voices. Like I said before, it’s not the voice of anyone else that matters, it’s the voice of those who have the ability to elect us. From day one in the office until the last day of the office. We should be representing the student body and making sure that the will of the student body is the will of the Student Government.”

He continued saying, “If had I been in the position, I would have made sure that I heard, also heard all the student voices were available to hear, make sure that all of them were represented and make sure that we address them accurately in the decision we made the students wanted it to pass. What we should have done is listen strictly to the student voices and ignored anything else, because the student voices are what matters most in making these decisions, making sure that we understand the complexities and nuances of all the situations and then pushing forward with the right decision based on the student body.”

Carreno then gave his answer saying, “This is going to be something for me that I will make sure to learn from and move on with as a student body president, specifically on the question about the veto. For me, what matters most is transparency.” He continued “If there’s any controversial bill, the other important aspect is to engage those crucial stakeholders upon which that bill could potentially impact. What matters most is about making sure that the student body president is open and available.”

The next question was: As Student Body Vice President, you oversee a wide range of departments, tasked with differing priorities to enhance the student experience. How will you balance empowering department leaders with ensuring alignment on items listed within your Platform? Additionally, how will you address underperformance within departments?

Womble answered, highlighting his experience as Director of the Campus Service Department, saying, “We can sit up here and talk about transparency all night long, but our team can say that we have done that, we have shown that.” He wants to provide students with more answers.

Gordon then answered saying, “I’m going to be at every single one of the director’s events, because it’s something that’s important to me. I think it’s very important to show face…and that’s what’s important, being there, having conversations with directors, motivating them, allowing them the opportunity to thrive in their position and do what they feel empowered to do.”

The last question was: Given the impact of recent rulings restricting DEI initiatives and race-based programs, many students are looking to campus leadership for a strong response. Are you comfortable publicly standing in opposition to these decisions? If so, how do you plan to use your platform to push back? If not, how do you justify that position to students who may feel abandoned by their representatives? 

Carreno answered saying, “I am absolutely comfortable advocating for dei and making a commitment that diversity, equity and inclusion matters at NC State University. It matters for student government and it matters across all [higher institutions] and in any place we have, it’s in my platform that I will commit to it.”

“I’m going to be a strong advocate against those actions,” said Carreno.

He said, “When the University of North Carolina Board of Governors passed that policy to diminish and dismantle equity and equal and equity and diversity within the University of North Carolina, we took a stand against that, and I will continue to work towards that goal. What matters is not to appease administrators or appease these government officials, but it is about strategic decision making. It is about strategic advocacy.”

Then Dewberry answered saying, “What we need do is start planning right now for how we’re going to protect resources we still have. What we need to do is utilize our campus centers as safe spaces on campus so that our students know where to go and who to go to when they need resources. What we need to do is make sure that our departments are working to support all of our students, make sure that we as leaders are accessible, in every sense of the word. What we need to do is make sure that we’re charting a path forward together as an institution, instead of just simply advocating for it. We need to start planning and making changes right now, because we as students can do something.”

This was a debate between Naila Din, a third-year in Microbiology and Chloe Webster.

The first question is “An important part of being Senate President is remaining impartial while leading and mentoring Senators. How do you plan to balance impartiality while ensuring all those running for Senate seats are able to achieve the goals they were elected for?”

Webster said, “It’s important to listen to the concerns of the Student Senate and to make that, I’m taking the concerns, not only of the students in it, but the students who come to our Senate to speak with us.”

She added, “I think it’s important to make sure when I’m reaching out to students, I’m reaching out to all students, I’m connecting with all student organizations, getting all perspectives, and that is what’s really going to help me to remain impartial, is to ensure that I’m getting every perspective possible when I’m making my decision.”

Din then answered by saying, “I think everyone has a unique voice, and I think all the voices should be uplifted and heard, and that’s why part of my platform is to have an open door policy.”

She wants to make sure everyone feels “a sense of trust” and wants to focus on listening to concerns, adding she also wants to ensure student’s “voices are heard and represented.”

The second and final question is: The Student Senate President plays a key role in representing our university within the UNC Association of Student Governments, working with other institutions to advocate for student interests statewide. How would you leverage this position to ensure our student body’s concerns are heard at the system-wide level? What specific initiatives or policies would you push for within ASG to benefit our students?

Din answered first, saying, “I’m a big believer in advocacy,” she continued saying, “stuff that I’m already currently involved with and very passionate about is related to diversity, equity and inclusion.”

She added, “I’m currently in discussions with faculty senate members, staff senate members. We all have a shared concern that this is something that needs to be addressed at the UNC system level and we will address it.”

She said she wants professors to be able to teach and speak freely in their classrooms and wants “students to be able to get a proper education for any issue.”

Webster said that she “advocated for our free expression” last year as part of a student government group, adding “we answer to the Board of Governors, we answer to a lot of institutions above us, and it is important that we take our concerns and we work with the other UNC schools who often share the same concerns. When we see policies coming in that are impinging on our rights to freely express our concerns, then we can’t effectively advocate.”

She continued saying, “Open discussion is very important for building community. And our community is more than just NC State. It is the entire UNC system, and I want to amplify the voices from our student body and then make that community extend into our whole state, so we can advocate as one.”

This was a debate between Emery Skolfield, a third-year economics major who, “served during my past two sessions in the treasury branch,” Lance Williams, a second-year majoring in agricultural science who has, “proudly served the student body in the past two years, first as a member of the first year student delegation and Senate” and Jon Carter, a second-year accounting major who says, “I believe that the student body deserves someone with the financial knowledge and experience to be responsible for the hundreds of thousands of dollars that are allocated to student organizations each year.”

The first question is, “Student organizations often struggle with securing sufficient funding to operate effectively. How do you plan to improve the appropriations process or provide resources to organizations that allow them to become more financially independent?”

Williams answered first, saying, “This absolutely has to be the number one issue that we are seeing from student organizations when they’re coming to the Treasury, looking for money.”

He continued, saying, “This is obviously very important, because Student Organizations need this money to be able to run. A big issue I think we are seeing is that we simply are not able to give them enough money as it stands currently. Unfortunately, during this past appropriations process, the top organizations were getting probably around under $600, whereas they’re able to ask up to $2,000 so there clearly is a deficit right now.

He says the top priority of the Treasurer is to clear up communication and get more money to student organizations. “If you are the president or treasurer of a club, getting a 20-page document to learn how to get money to your organization can be very daunting. And so while we do need to give them an ample amount of information, simplifying the communications process is gonna be huge, because a lot of the time these treasures, it’s their first time ever sitting in that position for their club, and they have no idea how to work their way through this process,” he added.

“In short, let’s get more money for our student organizations through the Treasury branch and make sure we are equitably sharing those funds to our student organizations.”

Carter then answered, saying, “In no way are the appropriation of the finance committee grants meant to be, you know, a significant funding source for our organizations.” He acknowledges that they are but says, “I want to see a treasury that is helping our student organizations become financially responsible, and I want us to be able to give them the resources that they need to raise the money that they need to support their events.”

He says he’s always skeptical of fee increases and “would like to see more grassroots efforts to encourage our student organizations to raise the money that they need.”

He says oftentimes student organizations have said “they’re unsure what is expected of them in the budget,” adding that because of this he wants to provide organizations with an example budget to reference.

Skolfield answered next saying, “There’s so many student organizations, and there’s only a certain amount of money that we can get. So although we may move to increase funds or maybe move to a different plan. I think the best thing that we can do as a treasury branch is sort of offer ourselves as a resource to these organizations.”

He advocated for increasing financial literacy among the student organizations, saying, “These resources would allow for these organizations to generate their own funds, to invest in themselves.” 

He says he worries that the burden of a fee increase would be felt, “And so I would move to try to increase the financial well being of these organizations from the ground up.”

The second and final question was: Transparency and accountability are crucial in managing student funds. What specific steps will you take to increase financial transparency and ensure students are informed about how their fees are being allocated?

Carter said, “I want to make sure that I am getting all of the input I can when I’m drafting the budget bill for next year” and “I want to make sure that our student fees are having the greatest positive impact on our student body that they possibly can.”

He said, “That’s why I’m running the student body treasurer, because I believe that I can make that as fair, efficient and transparent a process as possible.”

Next to answer was Skolfield who said he wants to continue and innovate the Open Treasury initiative, which is aimed at making treasury resources and the behind-the-scenes process more available to students.

He also said he wants to, “Work with the public relations department to kind of put more stuff out.”

He added “I want to make sure that student voices are being heard. I want to make sure that if they have opinions, it feels like there is a clear line of connection and communication.”

Williams was the final Senate Treasurer candidate to answer, saying, “I believe Student Government’s best kept secret is our incredible comms (communication) department.”

He also said he thinks, “We need overall higher involvement within the appropriations process, within our student government members,” adding that while he is “proud to have volunteered over 30 hours for the appropriations process,” this is not often the case for senators. Williams said he wants to see higher involvement among student senators and that oftentimes, what holds up action in the treasury is actually on the university side.

As treasurer, he said he wants to focus on “explaining that to the student organizations” instead of “just saying, sorry, it’s being held up at the university level.”