Debate Wednesday

A collegiate debate to discuss education funding will take place in the Living Room Wednesday at noon, sponsored by the Michael O. Leavitt Center for Politics & Public Service.

The College Libertarians, Republicans and Democrats will each have three members debating how the state of Utah should fix funding for education, Leavitt Center Student Associate Director Liz Ronnow said.

"We chose education funding (for the debate topic) because every student is affected by the issue," Ronnow said. "Everybody is always trying to find a way to finance their education so we figured people may take the time to listen to the three parties' ideas."

The parties' opinions on the topic will likely be vastly different, which will make the debate more interesting, Ronnow said.

"We've had the Libertarian Party participate in the debates before," Ronnow said. "It's nice to have a different perspective on issues. I believe each party will have great ideas and we expect a professional discussion."

The College Democrat Party's platform will focus on appropriating more money for education and increasing the number of teachers, College Democrats President Shawn Ledingham said.

"Our point of view is there should be more emphasis on hiring teachers so our classroom numbers reduce," Ledingham said. "Studies have shown that the smaller the classroom, the better education."

The College Republican Party's stand will differ from the Democrats by focusing on using the money the school already has for correct purposes, College Republicans Vice President Brichelle Falkner said.

"We need to think of quality as opposed to quantity," Falkner said. "Instead of using money for more buildings and more teachers, let's focus on investing the best quality of education."

Students are welcome to respond, if they have questions or comments, at the end of the debate, Ronnow said.

"We'll leave the last 10 or 15 minutes open for the student body," Ronnow said. "That is what collegiate debates are all about - a chance to speak your mind."

Even though the debate will take place during the last week before finals, members of the Leavitt Center are optimistic about the turnout.

"We understand that it is the stressful part of the semester, but we feel that this debate will be a good break from the students' studies," Ronnow said. "We are an educated university and we (members of the Leavitt Center student action committee) are hoping that students will take the time out of their busy lives to be enlightened by their fellow peers."

The debate was previously scheduled for Nov. 15, but because of complications with reserving the Living Room, the debate was rescheduled, said Cidne Christensen, a member of the student action committee.

"There were several students who came into the Leavitt Center asking about the debates and asked why it was canceled," Christensen said. "It's encouraging to see so many students interested in college events. We hope to see them and more attend the forum."