MFCD would like to congratulate the newly elected officers of MFCD.
Chris Stergalas, President
Kate Beson, Vice President
Mitchell Rivard, Membership Director
Dana Cronyn, Communications Director
Liz Hartig, Secretary
Alex Morgan, Treasurer
2009-2010 Candidate Application
Name: Chris Stergalas
Office Sought: President
School: University of Michigan-Dearborn Year: 2010
Email Address: stergalasc@collegedems.com
Current Positions held (on campus or other):
President- UM-Dearborn College Dems
President- Michigan Federation of College Dems
President- Downriver Teen Democratic Organization
College Coordinator-Young Democrats of Michigan
Congressional Aide- Office of Congressman John Conyers, Jr.
Biography of yourself (no more than 500 words): When I first ran for President of MFCD one year ago I had a mission to bring credibility back to the organization, and to reach out to campuses big and small in every region of our state, and we have done just that. Although there is still a lot of work to be done, I stand confidently by what we have achieved in the last year.
In 2007 with limited support across the state and little recognition from many of our state’s college campuses I set out with a plan to visit regions all across the state to engage new students and to set forth goals that every campus could reach. Although expectations were low, great success was seen statewide.
On the heels of 2007, I was determined to try it again, with 2008 being such a huge year for students. The support that we saw this year spoke volumes about how MFCD has grown in the last year. The goals of bringing all Michigan college campuses together became even closer on board the Make It Happen bus, travelling from Monroe, to Marquette, to Benton Harbor, to Traverse City. We registered voters, engaged students on campuses, and helped to turn out the November vote.
Other accomplishments:
*Held a first ever statewide conference bringing together students from all across the state to attend trainings and become more involved
*Raised nearly $15,000 for MFCD projects
*Chartered new campus organizations
*Helped to develop a new MFCD website
*Brought volunteers together closely with many of Michigan’s most contested candidates
My 2009-2010 plan:
*Continue to work closely with the Michigan Democratic Party, Youth Caucus, Young Democrats of Michigan, and every campus in the state to accomplish goals that affect students in Michigan and across the country.
*Bring students from each campus statewide together once again this spring for a statewide conference to learn new skills to put into practice on campus, and to learn how to continue our momentum both on campus and off.
*Vigorously go after some of Michigan’s most anti-student leaders and policies to make student voting more convenient.
*Bring students together in Lansing to help make our state leaders stay on task and put students first
*Expand membership by working closely with allies on every campus, and working to start organizations from the ground up.
*As a former community college student, reaching out to commuter schools and community colleges is incredibly important to me, and I will work closely with each of these schools to help expand our organization’s strength.
With your help we can continue to see growth statewide and to see MFCD become the strongest organization that it possibly can be. With your help MFCD has been able to become what it has, and I hope that you will stand with me once again to help make MFCD stronger, by helping me to lead our organization towards success once again.
Please post any questions that you may have!
Name:Kate Beson
Office Sought:Vice President
School: Wayne State University Year: Junior
Email Address:bb9692@wayne.edu
Current Positions held (on campus or other):President WSU College Democrats, Officer At Large MFCD, Treasurer Downriver Teen Democratic Organization, WSU Student Council Government Affairs Chair
Biography of yourself (no more than 500 words): _I am a very politically involved person with a lot of leadership experience with the Democratic party and especially the College Democrats. I have had the opportunity to work on many political campaigns, including acting as a student organizer for Barack Obama Campaign for Change. I also have a lot of campus leadership experience and community service participation. The reason I feel I am most qualified for this position is that when I see the need for improvement or change, I go for it. Last year as a first year college student, I founded the Wayne State University College Democrats chapter. Since then our membership has grown to become one of the largest non-Greek group on campus. At the end of last year I was also appointed as Officer at Large to the MFCD Executive Board. As an officer, I helped organize the first annual MFCD Conference in April 2008 and the Make It Happen Bus Tour 2009. I also helped campaign for Gary Peters, Carl Levin and Deb Kennedy in the November 2009 election. This past year I was elected to WSU Student Council and appointed to the Government Affairs Chair. As Chair, I am in charge of Lobby Day in Lansing, which consists of rallying students together and organizing a peaceful demonstration to lower higher education costs. I am also a member of the Student Environmental Action Coalition and the Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender and Allies organization at Wayne State University. I was also chosen to be a Student Ambassador for WSU. I balance these activities while working part-time at Children’s Hospital of Michigan as a unit clerk and taking Honors courses as a Political Science major. While I do involve myself with many activities, I have learned through experience how to best manage my time. In this upcoming ear, I plan on dedicating most of my time to College Democrats and continuing to improve the MFCD. In the past year the executive board has made MFCD a more powerful group, with State leaders looking to this organization for help. I believe MFCD still has more potential yet to be stronger voice in the Youth Movement. This past election, more young people than ever registered to vote and were excited to become part of the political process. Now is the time to harness that energy and show college students what to do now that the Presidential election is over. As Vice President, I hope to increase MFCD membership and motivate current members to take on a more active role. I also want to increase MFCD’s connections with State leaders. MFCD has grown much this past year, and I want the opportunity to make it even better.
Please post any questions that you may have:
Name: Mitchell Ryan Rivard
Office Sought: Membership Director
School: Michigan State University Year: Sophomore
Email Address: mitchellrivard@gmail.com
Current Positions held (on campus or other): Michigan State University College Democrats – Vice President; Associated Students of Michigan State University – James Madison College Representative; Case Hall Government Representative
Biography of yourself (no more than 500 words): My name is Mitchell Rivard and I am asking for your vote for Michigan Federation of College Democrats Membership Director. I am currently a sophomore at Michigan State University studying Political Theory and Constitutional Democracy at James Madison Residential College.
While only a sophomore, I have a vast array of past experience in politics. I am currently the Vice President of the Michigan State University College Democrats, where I have implemented several initiatives to make our campus more active.
Through the MSU Democrats, I completely recreated our roster and have been reaching out to all undergraduate students to become involved in our organization. Furthermore, I have the ability to effectively communicate with others.
Aside from the MSU Democrats, I have worked on several campaigns over the past few years, including Bay County Prosecuting Attorney Kurt Asbury’s re-election campaign, in which I was his campaign manager and State Representative Jeff Mayes, who represents my hometown of Bay City.
This fall, I interned for the Obama for America campaign on campus, having coordinated voter registration drives. I currently work at the State Capitol for Representative Mayes as a legislative intern.
I am running for MFCD Membership Director because I believe that I have the experience necessary to assist the Michigan Federation of College Democrats in encouraging more young Democrats to join us.
While advocating recruitment, it is also my opinion that sustainability is equally as important. By getting new members to join and then having them become active, we will flourish as an organization that can in turn provide more support for Democratic values across the state of Michigan.
Please post any questions that you may have!
Dana Cronyn
Name: Dana S. Cronyn
Office Sought: Communications Director
School: University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) Year: 2010
Email Address: dcronyn@umich.edu
Hello MFCD!
My name is Dana Cronyn and I am currently a junior at The University of Michigan studying Political Science and Communications. I have had the pleasure of working closely with the MFCD over the last two years and hope to continue this relationship in the future as MFCD Communications Director.
From the very first moment of my college career I have been an active College Democrat, campaigning for Debbie Stabenow and Jennifer Granholm in 2006. Since that time I have gone on to serve as an Executive Board member of the UM Dems and the Chair of the chapter’s Thoughtful Dems committee.
Thoughtful Dems is the veritable think tank of our chapter, articulating the organization’s vision and communicating our ideals with the campus, our local community, and the press. Moreover, we’re the rowdy group responsible for the creation of DemTV and our blog Kicking Ass Ann Arbor. I’m proud to say I personally reinvigorated our blogging efforts. Today KAA averages some 38 posts per week, making it the most active College Dems blog in the nation. In addition, our bi-weekly podcast, DemTV, has been an exciting creative outlet for our chapter and has helped chapters from across the state connect. To date we’ve been privileged to work with the Northern Michigan College Democrats, the Kalamazoo College Democrats, and Michigan State College Democrats. I’m proud of the connections we’ve forged and hope to expand DemTV’s reach in the future.
Among all of this excitement within College Democrats, I was thrilled to help found UM’s Students for Hillary chapter and served as the Events and Visibility coordinator for the duration of the primary season. The Hillary campaign gave me the opportunity to develop a strong democratic movement on campus, including an on-campus rally and two group trips to Iowa.
Once on the Obama bandwagon, I served as the UM Dems Media coordinator. Aside from traditional responsibilities, like writing press releases and blogging, I also worked to advertise and coordinate a number of dynamic events. Among these was UM’s Election Eve rally. Held in the Michigan Union Ballroom, more than 600 students turned out to see Governor Granholm, Diane Hathaway, and Denise Illitch in an inspiring show of Democratic support.
During my tenure as Communications Director I hope to use many of these new media tools to connect chapters across the state. As Democrats, we know the power of the grassroots. I look forward to working with you all in the coming months.
Scott Urbanowski
2009-2010 Candidate Application
Name: Scott Urbanowski
Office Sought: Communications Director
School: Central Michigan University; Year: Senior
Email Address: urbanowskis@collegedems.com
Current Positions held (on campus or other): Officer-at-Large, MFCD; Deputy Communications Director, College Democrats of America; Precinct Delegate
Biography:
I have been involved in the Democratic Party at the local, state, and national levels – involvements which I plan to put to use for MFCD to continue to build our Democratic Party and make our society better.
In 2006 and 2008 I was elected to serve as a Democratic Precinct Delegate in Kent County. I volunteered for our Democratic candidates in both of those years in both Kent and Isabella Counties. Last summer, I helped to organize the Kent County Democrats’ presence in the City of Kentwood’s Fourth of July Parade. Our contingent had thirty people, while the Republicans didn‘t even have a contingent. This is remarkable given that Republicans usually do better than Democrats in Kentwood.
Also during the 2008 campaign, I served Obama for America as a New Media Intern, where I managed the Michigan for Obama page on MySpace and responded to people’s inquiries about the campaign and motivated people to become involved in the campaign. Through MFCD, I worked to educate students on their voting rights as well as the offices and issues at stake in the election.
As Deputy Communications Director for the College Democrats of America, I have written press releases regarding student issues and helped to gather contact information for campus newspapers which the Obama campaign used to spread their message during the campaign. I have also been an important voice for Michigan students at CDA.
Beyond these involvements, I am also an avid writer, chiefly on political issues. Several of my letters to the editor have been published, and some of my blogging has earned me recognition in Michigan and across the country, including on Michigan Liberal (where I am a contributing editor) and the national blog Daily Kos. Notably, I have advocated for students by standing up for funding in higher education, including during the 2007 state budget crisis.
Outside of politics, I have been involved in my church, residence hall council, and Relay for Life at CMU (this year as a team captain). Next month I will be participating in an Alternative Spring Break through CMU regarding the issue of state park preservation.
As we go forward, I will work to ensure that every school’s voice is heard in MFCD; that students remain involved in the civic process; that MFCD leaders, including myself, are responsive to the needs of College Democrats across the state; and that Democrats continue to be successful in promoting our values to young people throughout Michigan.
Please post any question that you may have!
Name: Elizabeth Hartig
Office Sought: Secretary
School: University of Michigan Year: 2012
Email Address: ekhartig@umich.edu
Current Positions held (on campus or other): Michigan Federation of College Democrats Officer at Large, Co-Chair of Stonewall Democrats, Vice President of Downriver Teen Democrats
Biography:
My name is Elizabeth Hartig and I was raised in Trenton, MI. My father is an environmentalist and my mother is an environmental lawyer. I graduated from Trenton High School in 2008. During my high school career I played on the Varsity Golf Team, interned at the News Harold Newspaper, volunteered for presidential and congressional campaigns, worked in Washington DC as a congressional page for Judiciary Chair John Conyers, worked at Panera Bread, worked on a State Representative Campaign, was awarded a Political Activism Award from the teachers and the administration of my school, and was voted Class Humanitarian by my peers.
I now attend the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Like most, I am lost and confused when it comes to a major. It’s between Political Science, something in the health field, and something in Public Health. I am co-chair of Stonewall Democrats at the University of Michigan. This past year I have been serving as an Officer at Large of MFCD. During my senior year of high school I took off 4 days of school to help on the first MFCD Bus Tour. I enjoyed every minute of it. Last winter I attended the MFCD Conference. Last summer I attended the College Democrats of America Conference in Denver and learned about how to get active on college campuses. The next week I was able to go to the Democratic National Convention, it was one of the most inspiring things I have ever been to. This past fall I took off a week of class to attend the second MFCD bus tour and had a blast. Now I am running for secretary hoping to be able to be more involved.
Please post any questions that you have!
Name: Alexander Morgan
Office Sought: Treasurer
School: Kalamazoo College Year: 2011
Email Address: alex00morgan@gmail.com
Current Positions held (on campus or other):
Deputy Director of Membership, CDA
Director of Communication, MFCD
State of Michigan Coordinator, SFBO
Finance Director, Kalamazoo College Student Commission
Biography of yourself (no more than 500 words):
Alex Morgan grew up in Grosse Pointe, Michigan and learned the importance of political awareness and activism from his grandfather at the early age of six.
After intently watching two presidential contests, Alex campaigned tirelessly during the 2002 election cycle for then Michigan Attorney General Jennifer Granholm in her bid for Governor. Since that time, Alex has campaigned continuously for candidates up and down the Democratic ticket. Most recently, Alex was appointed Deputy Director of Membership for College Democrats of America in November 2008.
During his first quarter at Kalamazoo College, Alex founded the school’s chapter of Students for Barack Obama. Over the course of the next six months Alex coordinated dorm storms, out-of-state trips throughout the Midwest, phone banking, and voter registration events before being promoted to State of Michigan Coordinator. In addition to overseeing SFBO chapters across the state, Alex coordinated GOTV efforts on Kalamazoo College’s campus and worked with Western Michigan University to boost student voter turnout in the region by 22% on Election Day.
Alex’s political background certainly qualifies him to serve on the MFCD board; however, it is his service within the Kalamazoo College community that qualifies him to be MFCD Treasurer.
As a freshman at KZOO, Alex was elected to two terms as Student Commission Deputy Finance Director. In April of 2008, he was elected Finance Director, and currently oversees the Commission’s $78,000 budget. Working to build a solid foundation for the future of the Commission, Alex emphasizes transparency and fairness. According to Commission President Patrick Tanis, Alex “put aside bias and crafted a budget that was the most fiscally consistent I have seen during my time on the Commission.”
Alex will bring the same dedication to the MFCD Office of Treasurer. Working with the Michigan Democratic Party to streamline a budget for MFCD and host effective fundraisers that will propel the MFCD into the next election cycle and beyond.
Please post any question that you have!
Hello and welcome to the MFCD Blog world!
We are kicking off our blog this winter to open a new page in the book of MFCD Elections. This year our elections are being held completely over the internet.
Starting today, a forum will be started on this blog, where College Democrats from around the state can ask questions of all candidates running for MFCD Executive Board Positions. This forum will be on going all week, and into next week when elections will be held. Along with the forum, each candidate has submitted a video introducing themselves to chapters which can be viewed at www.michigancollegedems.com/schedule.
MFCD voting is done by chapter. Each chapter has 3 votes per office that they can do as they wish with, divide, pool, etc. Each chapter should hold a meeting sometime during the week of February 16th. Between the 16th and the 18th at 5pm the President or designee from each chapter should send votes to the MFCD Secretary, Michael Mersol-Barg. Votes will be recorded and announced by Friday, February 20th.
Stay tuned, and have fun participating!