Journalist: Destiny Lugo (ORU)
In this candidate forum, Kylee Laginess (TCC), Wesley Hurlbut (OSU) , and Tallie Tynes (OSU) all pitched the reasons why O.I.L. members should vote them into office. Laginess explained the importance of giving team members direct and clear information on what they must achieve for the organization of O.I.L. in order to be effective in their position. She also stressed the necessity of implementing a curriculum helping to foster understanding for new O.I.L. members to help get young delegations off the ground.
When a journalist in the room asked how she would differentiate herself from their fellow competitors, Laginess said it matters to her to “make sure that O.I.L. is an essential part of campuses that we are on…” and expressed that she has learned vital people skills through her experience in pageantry.
Tallie Tynes mentioned that she does not feel the cabinet is lacking, and believes the cabinet needs to be condensed, and have fewer positions so that people actually have solid defined roles.
She disclosed that she was afraid to fail, “I’m a perfectionist, and I was afraid of failing…but I decided to be courageous, and I think that if I don’t win, it’s going to be awesome because I know all of them personally”.
To differentiate herself from her peers Tynes said, “I’ve held the role that I’ve held in student government that allows me to oversee like 200 plus people, I know a lot of the people in this organization, and I’ve never been in an elected role before.”
Hurlbut emphasized the importance of listening to others before making a decision, and gave a great presence of humility. He stressed the need to find professional people to fill out the roles O.I.L. needs to take it to the next level and ensure they are professional. He disclosed that for him, he feels satisfied with his leadership if he knows he has improved the number of delegations they have, built people up, strengthened delegations, and helped them be as prepared as possible.
When I asked Hurlbut how he would improve the resource management of O.I.L. he responded stressing the importance of fundraising, group retention, and doing all in his power not to raise the fees and costs of O.I.L. to participants. To distinguish himself from his contestants he shared that he had served in a head executive role, and said, “I’ve seen the upper sides of both political wings of government, and I know how I can work both sides to bring solutions.”
At the end of the candidate forum, nearly all of them mentioned seeing their mothers as heroes, and mentioning exemplary family members as dear role models.