Lyssa Beyer

Power isn’t one of the reasons why current Student Senate Vice President Megan Charlier is running for a second term in the same position on a different ticket.

“We have the desire to do this job,” she said of her and her running mate, presidential candidate Tim Lauer.

Charlier, a sophomore political science major, ran for her first term as a vice-presidential candidate last spring with current student body president Ray French. The pair was the first uncontested ticket for the top student body job since at least 1973, according to Spectator records.

That’s not the case this election, as the Lauer-Charlier ticket are facing current Student Sens. Emily Mattheisen and Caroline Wee.

Charlier has served on Student Senate since the Fall 2006, working as a member of the Chancellor’s Leadership Group, the Strategic Planning Committee and the Davies Exploratory Committee. She is also a Resident Assistant in Towers North.

Lauer, also a sophomore, is a biochemistry/molecular biology major. He has served on Student Senate since 2006 and is currently serving as the Chief of Staff in the French-Charlier cabinet. Lauer has also served on the Finance Commission, the Service Learning Advisory Committee and the Information Technology Commission, as well as the Search and Screen Committee for the associate vice chancellor and dean of graduate studies positions.

Wednesday, the pair participated in a debate with the Mattheisen-Wee ticket to discuss issues they felt pertinent to their cause.

OpenCourseWare
High on the Lauer-Charlier to-do list is implementing an online database that would allow students to see syllabi and video from professors courses to help give students a better understanding of what a course would be like.

Lauer said the OpenCourseWare program would start slow, having only a few professors participating at first before opening the program to all professors. He said Senate received $20,000 toward start-up costs but added that it wouldn’t cost much to implement and run the program since the program is in place at universities across the country.

Diversity
Lauer and Charlier also feel that diversity tolerance on campus is an important issue to face.

“We want to address the climate at Eau Claire first, before we worry about bringing in more diversity,” Charlier said.

The pair said they would address the Diversity Resource Center and make sure all students have a voice in the development and utilization of the center.

Performing arts center
A heated discussion throughout the community and on campus has been about the introduction of a performing arts center in Eau Claire.

Both Lauer and Charlier believe that building a performing arts center in the community will help construct a positive relationship with community as well as help make it possible for larger events to come to the city for students and community members to enjoy.

The pair also said they wish to have a strong relationship with administration as well as the students.

“We need to work with (administration), step up and have a sound voice with (administrators),” Charlier said. “But Tim and I also really want to work for the students.”