August 15, 2008
Bowling
Green, Ky. - “Get on the Bus: 40 Years of Political Activism” is the theme for Western Kentucky University’s Political Engagement Project for 2008-09 and the first stop will be the national political conventions.
More than a dozen WKU students plan to attend the upcoming Democratic and Republican conventions.
Dr. Saundra Ardrey, head of WKU’s Department of Political Science, and Dr. Joel Turner, assistant professor, will accompany a group to the Democratic National Convention Aug. 25-28 in Denver. Dr. Scott Lasley, assistant professor, will accompany a group attending the Republican National Convention Sept. 1-4 in Minneapolis-St. Paul.
“WKU at the Conventions is an academic project designed to give students the opportunity to experience the national party conventions,” Dr. Ardrey said. “We hope it provides students with a greater understanding of the role the national political party plays in politics, especially with the election of a president.”
The students will participate in numerous activities during both conventions thanks to support from state political party organizations, she said. “Our students will have unprecedented access to convention proceedings,” Dr. Ardrey said.
Students attending the Democratic convention include Christopher Palmer, Travis Mills, Ashley Bland and Rachel Taylor, all of Bowling Green; Ryan Edge of Philpot; Kendrick Bryan of Elizabethtown; Nils Herdelin of Louisville; Sarah Tindle of Shelbyville; Meredith Moore of Evansville, Ind.; and Destiny Nabozny of Pendleton.
Students John Carter of Tompkinsville, Shane Noem of Union, Kaylee Carnahan of Bowling Green and Allie Hembree of Shelbyville will attend the Republican convention.
Both groups will be blogging about their experiences online at http://2008conventionblog.blogspot.com/. Supporters of the trips include the Provost’s Office, Potter College of Arts & Letters, and state and local political parties.
“Our hope is that once these students have been engaged in the political process that they will bring that enthusiasm to campus and encourage other students to participate,” Dr. Ardrey said.
‘Get on the Bus’ already rolling
When students return from the conventions, the “Get on the Bus” theme will be rolling thanks to an old school bus that is being converted into a rolling display of political activism and history.
Dr. Sally Ray, head of WKU’s Department of Communication, envisions a psychedelic look from the 1960s and ’70s as WKU M.A.S.T.E.R. Plan freshmen and art guild students along with members of the community organization Kaleidoscope paint the exterior of the bus. The painting will begin the evening of Aug. 19 during M.A.S.T.E.R. Plan activities.
The Kentucky Museum is working on a political activism exhibit that will be housed inside the bus, Dr. Ardrey said.
The bus will be used at several campus events, including the Freshman Assembly on Sept. 2 and DebateWatch on Oct. 7, as a way to keep students excited and engaged leading up to the Nov. 4 election.
“We want to grab students early and show them that political activism is an important part of their lives,” Dr. Ardrey said.
The Political Engagement Project’s emphasis on the presidential election will conclude in January with a trip to the inauguration in Washington, D.C.
Civic engagement effort continues
The Political Engagement Project is one part of the American Democracy Project at WKU. This year, WKU’s civic engagement efforts are expanding thanks to the Kettering Foundation and the American Association of State Colleges and Universities.
WKU is one of 16 AASCU member schools that are participating in a national civic agency project in partnership with Harry Boyte and the Center for Democracy and Citizenship at the University of Minnesota.
Dr. Eric Bain-Selbo, head of the Department of Philosophy and Religion, attended an initial meeting about the project this summer in Dayton, Ohio.
The civic agency project utilizes Boyte’s community organizing model that requires collaboration with community groups to solve problems, Dr. Bain-Selbo said. “In this model, you don’t swoop in with all the answers, you empower people to seek change and achieve change in their own community,” he said.
WKU’s participation in the American Democracy Project, its civic engagement and student volunteer efforts and its “impressive record of community involvement” led to the invitation to participate in the civic agency project, Dr. Bain-Selbo said.
“The community organizing model starts from the ground up,” he said. And that means the project fits well with the Political Engagement Project and with WKU’s ALIVE Center for Community Partnerships, he added.
Students today are demanding more engagement opportunities and have background in community engagement through their churches, their communities and their own volunteer work. “Many of our students are looking for opportunities when they get to campus,” Dr. Bain-Selbo said.
The participating schools will meet in Minneapolis in November to share ideas, refine their plans and determine ways to measure success.
Boyte also is scheduled to visit WKU in late October and will talk about his book “Everyday Politics.”
“Our commitment as an institution to graduating good citizens is a political commitment but it cuts across the political spectrum,” Dr. Bain-Selbo said.
More WKU news is available at www.wku.edu and at http://wkunews.wordpress.com/. If you’d like to receive WKU news via e-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.
For information, contact Saundra Ardrey at (270) 745-4558.
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