WS Chronicle

BY TEVIN STINSON 

THE CHRONICLE 

With Election Day drawing near, and the presidential election heating up, Chelsea Clinton made a campaign stop on the campus of Wake Forest University (WFU) earlier this week to discuss her mother’s platform to improve the education system and the quality of life for all Americans.

During her visit to the city, Clinton hosted a Women in Leadership Panel that featured leaders from WFU, the city of Winston-Salem, and surrounding areas. The panel of powerful women was moderated by the founder of WFU’s Women’s Center, Dr. Paige Meltzer, and included Libba Evans, WFU alumna and advocate for women’s rights and early childhood education; City Council Member Denise “D.D.” Adams, and WFU senior Chizoba Ukario.

To jumpstart the conversation, each panelist talked about the importance of having women in leadership roles. Ukario, a proud Clinton supporter said, although the role of women has progressed over the years, there is still work to be done.

“We are rising to new heights today, but we have to do more to ensure the voices of women across the country are heard,” she said. “There is still work today and I believe Secretary Clinton will continue that work.”

Adams, the City Council representative for the North Ward, said, “For women, this is our time. For years we have been on the sidelines, but I tell people all the time we are the ones who make the cart go.

“That glass ceiling has always been put in our face, and someone said in our ear don’t touch it,” she continued. “But Hillary Clinton has broken that ceiling, and we will continue to do so when she is elected the next president of the United States.”

Adams then urged the more than 200 students in attendance to get out and vote and make sure others are doing the same.

Evans, a member of the first graduating class at WFU to include women, said it is very important that young girls understand the importance of education, which is why she has been a longtime supporter of Hillary Clinton and her work to improve the education system.

When Chelsea Clinton took center stage, she said it is important that we close all imagination gaps.

She said, “It’s hard for us to imagine what we cannot see, which is why it is so important that we elevate people who don’t fit the historic mold.”

Clinton then discussed her mother’s plan to make higher education more affordable, and cutting back student debt.

According to Clinton, under her mother’s plan, students in North Carolina who come from households that make less than $125,000 a year would be able to attend state colleges and universities without paying the cost of tuition. Currently nearly 90 percent of North Carolinians make less than $125,000. The plan would also make technical colleges tuition free and allow college grads to refinance their college loans.

“If you can renegotiate loans for cars and houses, there is no reason why you shouldn’t be able to do the same with college loans,” Clinton said.

Before leaving campus Clinton sat down with students who participate in the Wake the Vote, a program that offers students the opportunity to formally examine issues central to the presidential election.