April 20 marked the debate between the Fiegel ticket, consisting of Joshua Fiegel for president and running mate Keenan Brummett for Vice President, against the Wiza ticket formed by the former college of business administration Sen. Cate Wiza for president and current public relations director for Student Association (SA) Olivia Ahnen for vice president of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse student body.

The debate was held via the web-conferencing app Webex, as COVID-19 continues to keep halls, dorms, and auditoriums at UWL closed. Moderated by associate professor of political science Anthony Chergosky, a plentiful number of students and faculty were in attendance, actively passing questions along to Chergosky for candidates to answer. The nominees spoke of their concerns and prospected goals for UWL to base their decision on who to vote for on election day, April 28, 2020.    

Question for Wiza and Brummett: “How will you improve student outreach and promote the dissemination of information between the administration and the student body?” 

With the experience Ahnen has procured during her time as SA’s public relations director, she has her marketing background as experience. Along with her experience on senate, Ahnen started her own internet marketing service called “Moxie House Media,” which is designed to “help women leverage their passions and talents to build confidence, brands, and lives that they love.” 

Wiza sighted her running mate’s knowledge as a vital tool that they plan to utilize during their campaign. Wiza explained how important it is for her to keep her services as transparent as possible, describing them as simple gestures like keeping her office hours open for all students who need their voices heard and placing information in easy-access areas for students who are active on social media. 

Brummett responded by agreeing with Wiza on her stance for inclusive, face-to-face office hours. If elected as Vice President, Brummett looks to reach out to all presidents, no matter the “race or gender” of each group on campus so that they can talk, and keep these “heads” of campus transparent. As a member of Kappa Sigma, members Brummett and Fiegel aim to also use their fraternity’s social media to spread their campaign across students. 

Question for Ahnen and Fiegel: “What is Student Association’s role in maintaining a safe campus as it relates to title nine?”  

“One of the main responsibilities for SA is making sure everyone feels safe, with an area on campus where they are able to speak freely, no matter the background,” Ahnen said. Wiza and Ahnen will work toward applying a student they deem well suited for the inclusivity director position if elected.    

“Funny enough, I was actually on the student safety ad-hoc committee this year,” Fiegel said. This focuses on securing the needs for the UWL’s safety, with issues like where cameras should be placed, lights for dark sidewalks, and passages between buildings. One of Fiegel’s larger concerns lies with the property that is stolen from UWL students each year. “We started discussions with the head of the police department, or whatever you want to call it, on campus to see if they can go to these people and have their property returned to them, and have justice served,” Fiegel said.   

Question for Wiza and Brummett: “In a growingly patrician political environment, what steps will your administration take in remaining non-patrician?”  

According to Brummett, “Shifting left or right” is of no importance. “I want to get everyone’s opinion,” Brummett said. “There is always a majority vote, and as I recognize this, I won’t take sides on our campus.”  

Wiza made her stance clear on what side she will take, opting for one that is based around respectful communication between all sides. “So, that means each member of our cabinet or senate needs to be respectful of all opinions. It’s about utilizing the difference in opinions, and constructively forming a solution for the students,” Wiza said.   

Question for Ahnen and Fiegel: “What are your plans for promoting and supporting student efforts in sustaining sustainability on campus?”  

Fiegel would seek a full-time sustainability director if elected, similar to the ones who handle sustainability efforts on campuses neighboring UWL like Western Technical College. As a finance student, he plans to use his studies to promote to Chancellor Joe Gow and the rest of his cabinet to prove why it would be a good choice, numerically.  

Ahnen will be supporting an initiative produced by current sustainability director Samantha Wolfe in continuing the “TREX bins” initiative across campus, where students can donate trash bags for the chance to have them recycled into a bench in honor of their efforts to save their environment. “Looking at long term sustainability is important, but there are many small things that we could be doing first to support this effort,” Ahnen said.   

Question for Wiza and Brummett: “In what ways have you made an effort to make this campus a more inclusive place and how will you build on that?”  

When Wiza first became a senator for the college of business, she was the only female candidate running against a ballot of six other men. “[This] made me wonder,” Wiza said. “Why aren’t more women running for these positions?” 

As president, Wiza would like to continue the “Elect Her” event this up-coming fall to create change and teaching women how to utilize their voices for the upcoming November election. “I sat on the council of presidents and senators, I worked closely with the presidents of the business organizations, I worked with women who were in positions of power here at UWL; We need to have conversations about working together and utilizing how we can make more voices heard,” Wiza said.  

Brummett discussed his small, unpaid role within UWL Black Student Unity, a group of minority students he wishes to see have even more inclusivity, by allowing all people to join the group. “Many people did not feel included on this campus, me included, but it should be an issue for all people. The more types of races we have on campus, the more different types of people in power will allow more people to go somewhere in life.”   

Question for Ahnen and Fiegel: “What is Student Association’s responsibility in creating a healthy environment with respect to alcohol and other drugs?”   

Health and safety go hand in hand for Ahnen, she says while also regarding the culture that is based around the city of La Crosse, with its bars and active social scene for of-age college students. “I think we have a more unique situation across most other campuses across the United States, and by making sure that students who wish to participate in the La Crosse night-life take care of their friends and make smart decisions, SA would be set as far as what is in their control,” Ahnen said.   

“My perspective on this, and how the safety ad-hoc committee views this as well, is that the students stay safe,” Fiegel said. Fiegel thinks that campus leaders should represent the area they reside in. “Obviously, we are in the middle of Wisconsin; people like cheese and, you can fill in the second one, but it’s about promoting a healthy culture. If you tell teenagers ‘don’t do that’ that’s exactly what they want to do. We want to promote a safe environment where people can be moderate with their consumption,” Fiegel said.   

Question for Wiza and Brummett: “What will you do to promote safety on campus?”  

The communication between campus police and students is where Brummett will start. “They understand the problems people are going through daily, which will benefit from by using their resources.”    

While Wiza also believes that SA should maintain a relationship with the police department, hearing what the students have to say is important as well. By utilizing all powers in and around campus, she believes in the power of collective will in keeping students safe. “Is it cameras, additional lights? It’s scary without these things; are there areas on campus that might need to be improved in order to ensure safety? These are the questions we will confront.”  

Question for Ahnen and Fiegel: “How will you promote accountability among all Student Association members in being active within their roles, including yourself?”  

Fiegel believes in impeachment if needed. “When someone breaks the rules, when someone doesn’t do their duty, they need to be brought by another member of SA and have them say ‘hey you aren’t doing your job, let’s bring someone else who will.’” He wants to encourage a culture where it’s okay to have disagreements, something he says he has noticed lacking in the senate chambers this year. “I felt like everyone was just agreeing with each other. That’s not necessarily what we want, we want people to use their voices, respectfully.” Fiegel said.

“Disagreement is good,” Ahnen stated. “When ideas become homogenous, we lose individuality. We are here to disagree and come to intelligent solutions about issues on campus,” Ahnen said. She credits the capability in doing this to one simple procedure: showing up. “It’s being there; it’s doing your job, even if you don’t agree with everything that is being discussed. Every week. If you cannot do that then there is no role, at least within my administration, for you to take these responsibilities seriously.”   

Question for Wiza and Brummet: “I understand that you are all very involved students, but will you all be able to handle the time commitment that comes with being President or Vice President? Also, if you have been involved on Student Association before, could you comment on your past meeting/committee meeting attendance record?”  

According to Wiza, attendance is of utmost importance. Being a member of the College of Business administration for the last year and a half, she has yet to miss a 7 a.m. meeting. “I sit there and listen to the issues within my constituency. As a member of the Academic Initiatives Differential Allocations Committee (AIDAC), this act of simply sitting with open ears towards those who need their voices heard can be the most responsible act for a student representative to do their jobs correctly. “To be there in general, so that you are loaded with information for your constituents and ask them what they want. It’s important to hear this information no matter what; no matter if this it’s a three-hour-long, boring meeting, it doesn’t matter. You have to be there, it’s the job,” said Wiza.

With Brummett having no experience with SA, he instead calls upon the philosophy of championed Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi and his “Lombardi time” which is showing up 30 minutes early to every function or event. “That’s just how I grew up as a wrestler: if you are not on time, you don’t get to participate. My parents have always been late people so I have tried to make an effort to be the opposite,” Brummett said.   

Question for Wiza and Fiegel: “What is one specific goal you have as president?” 

Wiza’s specific goal is working with the violence prevention office and the inclusivity director, both future and present, on creating a campaign against sexual and domestic assault on and around campus. “I want to get these resources out on social media and available to students to inform them on their rights and resources and what steps they should take in order to prevent these issues,” Wiza said, claiming that by doing so she would be able to combat students being left without any information on how to access these resources, and who they should turn to. 

Using both social media and the “Take Back the Night” event, where area universities and colleges came together and walked from UWL through Western Technical College, concluding with speakers and activities at Viterbo University in the name of awareness for assault survivors, her campaign aims to demonstrate the power of teamwork.

As for Fiegel, sustainability and the proper hiring of a coordinator in order to ensure UWL’s environmental health is a goal for him. “This would be the indicator in my time as president, whether I did a good job or not. Did I do what I could? Did I show Chancellor Gow the numbers, showing why this is a good thing?” Fiegel said.  

Question for Ahnen and Brummet: “How will you facilitate the senate meetings and make sure they run smoothly and efficiently?”  

“I think that most people who know me well can attest to the fact that I like to get things done. I do not like to waste time.” Ahnen said. As an active member of this year’s cabinet, under President Sita Agterberg, she claimed to be aware of how long the meetings can be, posing as a challenge in keeping senators focused and on task, quality time in the eye of Ahnen who will keep meetings smooth and understandable for all to learn from and enjoy.    

For Brummett, keeping meetings productive comes down to having the appointed do their jobs. “If they want to be there, if they care, I am going to make sure that people do what they need to stay on task.” According to Brummett, when meetings run longer it’s because “people have different opinions on things and sometimes they need to run longer.”  

Question for all four candidates: “What is your proudest accomplishment here at UWL?”  

Wiza’s accomplishments involved course work, but not the kind one would expect. She participated in an intergraded-core program through the College of Business Association. Where instead of taking four separate classes with the regular tests, quizzes, and homework, she instead had the opportunity in being part of a team of students who offered projects to local companies, like Reinhart food service, and creating a final diversity and inclusion report for the company to utilize, as well as how to utilize specific language to ensure comfort for whoever chooses to apply to their company for work. Seeing the faces from companies like Reinhart when presented with a passionate, well-formulated project is something Wiza takes great pride in. “It’s great to see my hard work pay off, and to see these skills I have gained, to see a professional side of what these classes here at UWL have to offer skillwise is great to see.”  

With COVID-19 pausing some collegiate life, Ahnen’s accomplishment never truly came to; but that doesn’t mean her time conducting community research about the socioeconomic achievement rates in La Crosse went unnoticed. By connecting members of the La Crosse chapter for the group Aspiring Educators of Wisconsin with Hintgen Elementary School, one of the highest free/reduced lunch numbers in the La Crosse school district, she explains how this dynamism she keeps herself accustomed to in promoting well-being for all, helped many children who are below the poverty line be guided towards the resources they need for success. This project helped earn her an opportunity to participate in the social justice panel that communication studies professor Dr. Beth Boser had planned for the spring, which unfortunately will not happen. “As Cate said, it’s great to see the real world validate the classwork you are passionate about. To see these kids benefit from my work and having had the opportunity to be invited to present this information at the social justice panel really pays off,” Ahnen said.    

“As much as I love bragging about myself,” Fiegel began, “there are tons of things that I have done that may seem more honorable than my greatest accomplishment, which actually began by receiving a ‘D’ in a course. I retook the class over J term while I working a 40–hour factory job, and got an ‘A.’ Falling down and picking myself up is my greatest achievement.”  

During Brummett’s general education communications class, he was assigned a group project to go out and do something good for the community. His group decided to visit a retirement home and help out for a day. “I had no idea the importance this had on people’s lives. The people there were so happy to meet with us and tell us their stories, I was flabbergasted by everything,” Brummett said.

Question for Wiza and Brummett: “What is Student Association’s responsibility in promoting school spirit?”

Wiza would like to promote “Festive Friday’s.” Due to current Vice President Dana Nielsen’s efforts in establishing “Festive Fridays,” a day of the week devoted to UWL pride through donning maroon and silver, Wiza is proud to have something that can unionize the UWL community. “It’s a great opportunity to simply show your school spirit: on your shirt, on a bag, a hat. It’s something I want to continue.” 

Brummett’s “leading by example” mentality is where he wishes to promote school spirit. “I for one love all the sports teams and activities La Crosse has to offer, one of the many things that excite me to be on this campus,” Brummett said. Brummett came to UWL initially to wrestle, which gave him an “insight on how student-athletes feel about people watching and supporting them.” Brummett wishes to use this background to draw more attention to school athletic events and achievements.  

Question for Ahnen and Fiegel: “What do you think will be the biggest barrier for your nomination given your relationship with the administration?” 

Fiegel wishes to be taken seriously. “We are the voice of the students,” Fiegel said, placing blame on the notoriously low voter turnout for student representatives as to why the administration does not supposedly take SA seriously. “I feel like you have to make a point for them to acknowledge you. We are young adults, and we have to make a point in making sure they hear us,” Fiegel said.   

“I would like to say that Cate and I already have a solid connection with members of the administration, one being the director of university centers Larry Ringgenberg, with the time we have held positions on the SA,” Ahnen said, who plans on utilizing these relationships to benefit the student population. With the administered time offered for this question, Ahnen spoke on the importance of recognizing that administrators for UWL have what is best in mind for the student body as they, “wish to keep us informed, communicate openly with honesty, and working together as efficiently and respectfully as possible.”   

In their closing statements, Ahnen spoke on behalf of her running mate’s campaign, reminding the viewers at home of what they discussed and value: inclusivity, sustainability, working with the violent prevention office, and making sure students feel safe. “We have also placed ample time diligently placed on the positions we currently hold on SA and having practiced these reliable leadership positions serves as a prerequisite for the roles of Vice President and President of the UWLSA,” Ahnen concluded.  

“Being a business major, I have opportunities outside of college. This is not about me, or my resume; Keenan and I are here to be the voice for students, the ones with the know-how when discussing issues with the administration. At the end of the day we are here because we feel we are the best choice to communicate with the administration,” said Fiegel.