The candidates explained why they feel qualified to represent the identities that compose the student body, whether cultural, racial or socioeconomic.
Ferrari credited his previous experience as an ICC co-chair in helping him "absorb" the diverse perspectives present at Dartmouth.
Leger said she is prepared to listen to others' opinions and help put in place policies that address them. She added that there is a lack of interaction between diverse communities on campus and that different groups should mingle in each others' spaces.
"I feel that the reason I can try to help as many parts of the campus as possible is that I love reaching out to people and hearing their different perspectives," she said.
Ramirez plans to initiate a campaign titled "What's Your Story?" that allows students to "contextualize" their peers and minimize stereotyping. Ramirez said the campaign will help him identify with a wide range of campus groups.
When Wood served as secretary on the Assembly's executive board last summer, she assisted in gathering a broad spectrum of student input to inform the presidential search committee. Her experience motivated her to run for study body president.
The candidates discussed the different ways that privilege manifests itself on campus and certain communities are marginalized.
Ramirez, who is originally from Colombia, said he understands what it means to be a minority student in a predominantly white, upper-class environment.
"We have a certain privilege because we are very intelligent," he said. "But certain segments of the Dartmouth community might feel more privileged."
Privilege derives from ignorance of other races, cultures and backgrounds, and the best method of addressing it is to stimulate communication, Ramirez said. If elected, Ramirez plans to share the stories of various Dartmouth students through social media.
Wood suggested hosting a philanthropic event, open to all community members.
"Every member of this community deserves to be accepted and respected for who they are and where they are from," she said.
Ferrari emphasized facilitating organic conversations to encourage sharing various perspectives without the fear of judgment.
When asked what actions the Assembly should take in response to the recent rise in acts of intolerance, the candidates outlined ideas to use new and old programs.
Wood wants to highlight Diversity Peer Program initiatives and said it is crucial for everyone to reject intolerance. Ramirez said people need to accept information related to various discriminatory acts.
Ferrari said he plans to ensure that the administration pays more attention to incidents of intolerance, and would achieve this by bringing the groups that lobby the administration together to develop a "unified voice," including Student Assembly and the ICC.
"I can't understand why the administration is misappropriating time debating whether we should be a college or a university," he said. "In the meantime, there are still students on campus that think that promoting a diverse student population is somehow akin to black privilege.'"
Leger said administrators, Student Assembly leaders and students should attend discussions on diversity issues. In discussing prevailing gender issues on campus, the candidates elaborated on the problems that male-dominated social spaces and sexual assault pose.
Wood said she would like to see the creation of more female-dominated and gender-neutral social spaces outside of the Greek system. Ferrari said the Assembly should support and strengthen existing programs like the Sexual Assualt Peer Advisors.
Leger said the College needs a central "base" where students could find help for gender-related issues. Ramirez said he wants to encourage more students to participate in events related to gender issues like V-Week and Men's Forum.
O'Connell asked what systemic changes the candidates would propose to help support community integration, and they largely looked to supporting or modifying existing programs.
Ferrari emphasized the importance of sustaining pilot programs and strengthening existing ones, while Leger said she wants to make Greek houses social spaces as well as places to foster leadership.
Ramirez said the Assembly could develop programs similar to the First-Year Student Enrichment Program, which use mentor-mentee relationships to stimulate interaction between students of diverse identities. Wood said she wants to give undergraduate advisors a central role in promoting campus integration and strengthening the sense of community.
In the question and answer session that followed the debate, audience members asked about the candidates' plans to engage different campus communities and the sacrifices they are willing to make for their goals. One student said past Assembly presidents did not participate in cultural programs and events related to the cultures that are not their own.
In response, the candidates agreed that they sometimes felt uncomfortable in other cultural spaces. O'Connell said the discomfort candidates feel in reaching out to different groups demonstrates the urgency of fostering community diversity and integration.
He added that any incident of intolerance or sexual assault is "completely unacceptable," but that candidates must realistically assess what they can achieve in a short period of time as student leaders.
O'Connell said he was generally pleased with the debate, but that the winner will have to work toward devising concrete plans in order to realize his or her ideals.
"I think the challenge for the incoming SA president will be to set up goals and expectations for themselves that they can accomplish within a year," he said. "The reality is, at an institution that is as large and old as Dartmouth, institutional and cultural change is not immediate."
