Politics – Page 56 – Center for Law, Engagement, and Politics

LEAP Center Students in Austin: Day One

The LEAP Center Student Advisory Board (and some fellows SHSU students) embarked to Austin this week to attend the New Politics Forum’s “Campaign Bootcamp.” But in the true multi-disciplinary spirit of the organization, we had a few other things to tackle first…

Salado Creek

To begin of our first full day in Austin, LEAP students headed to Salado, TX to explore a tiny, tourist town full of southern hospitality. Upon our arrival, we visited Salado Creek with hopes to see Tabletop Rock, where wagons crossed the creek bed during the nineteenth century. The group took the opportunity to take selfies with the overflowing creek.

Salado College

In the nineteenth century, Salado was also home to Salado College, which had 300 students at peak registration. Unfortunately, in 1901 the college burned down leaving ruins which have since been converted into a public park. The ruins made for an exciting photo opportunity!

Following our visit to the Salado College ruins, LEAP students eagerly enjoyed browsing about in local shops. We encountered many different types of art, jewelry, and homemade goods. Helping to boost our energy, the group stopped at Salado Mercantile, a gift shop, which offered a variety of unique bottled sodas and their specially seasoned crackers.

The Legend of Sirena

Regaining a bit of jump in our step, the LEAP Center students headed to the statue of Sirena, by Troy Kelley. According to mythology, Sirena, an Indian woman, wished to marry a brave man who did not feel the same passion for her. Drawn by her pain of unrequited love, a magic wielding catfish found her and promised her marriage with the warrior if she swam as a mermaid with him each full moon for a year. She married her brave man, knowing that no human could see her in her mermaid state, lest she be mermaid forever. The last full moon of her penance, Sirena’s husband saw her swimming in the river, sealing her mermaid fate. She now lives as a bronze sculpture, forever in anguish on the bank of Salado Creek.

To suppress our mid-morning sweet tooth, we made our way to a special treat that included sampling a delicious assortment of fudge at Salado’s Mud Pies Pottery. In the end, the group favorites were the crème brûlée, red velvet, and salted caramel fudge. Inside, we also eyed with want the wonderful ceramics masterpieces by local artist, Titia Arledge.

Salado’s Sculpture Garden

One of the unique parts of Salado proved to be the Salado Sculpture Walk. Consisting of a single pathway and a small creek, the sculpture walk was an unexpected surprise. Students enjoyed observing the unique pieces of art such as Troy Kelley’s “Handicapped Mask” and another by La Paso named Starburst for its kinetic motion.

Bringing the adventure of Salado to an end, LEAP students had the opportunity to watch one of Salado’s glass blowing artists, Aaron Gist, in action as he created hand blown pieces for a Chihully-like chandelier masterpiece. Watching in amazement, LEAP students observed the art of making glasswork in one of the many local shops that exhibits the importance of art to Salado’s community.

Georgetown’s Monument Cafe

On the way back to Austin, LEAP students made a speedy stop for lunch at the Monument Café in Georgetown.

The Cafe specializes in breakfasts (served all day) and lunches. We opted for the lunch fare, with our group enjoying home cooked biscuits, club sandwiches, burgers, and delightful fried blueberry pies with frozen custard. The food was good, the service was friendly and quick, and we left satisfied and in a hurry to get to the New Politics Forum Campaign Bootcamp.

New Politics Forum

Our Salado adventures were so intriguing that we arrived late to the University of Texas campus and managed to walk straight into the beginning presentation. Luke Marchant, the director at Mammoth Marketing Group, who has successfully managed state and federal political campaigns for people such as U.S Senator Marco Rubio, was our first Republican mentor along with Democrat Matt Glazer. Matt Glazer is currently the executive director of the Austin Young Chamber of Commerce and is also a seasoned NPF democratic mentor. The two mentors opened up by discussing the types of campaigns and highlighted the different areas of them. We learned that using previous polling data would help us decide to simply mobilize the voters or persuade new voters. Marchant and Glazer also spoke to us about the elements of a campaign and some of those elements include knowing the reason why are you running, the issues that matter, the goal and the message that you want your campaign to portray. Asking yourself why you are running is one of the most important questions of campaigning.

After a short break, we were introduced to Rob Johnson and J.D. Gins. Rob Johnson is the former campaign manager for Rick Perry for President and J.D. Gins is the executive director of Travis County Democratic Party. Like the first two speakers, Gins and Johnson are men of opposing parties to fulfill the nonpartisanship ideals of the program. Both speakers agreed that running a campaign involves “blocking and tackling”, meaning that following the steps to create a successful campaign is key. Rob Johnson pointed out that the Digital Director is one of the most important persons in a campaign and that adapting to society is crucial to produce a win.

When Gins and Johnson are determining if they want to run the campaign of a candidate, they ask a few important questions, including whether they have enough money, whether there’s an open position, and most importantly whether a candidate WANTS to run and put in the effort that it takes to win. As Gins said, “When you walk in, do the work in front of you” meaning that not even the candidate is above the smallest job that needs to be done. Before closing their presentation and going to a break, the two men let the students know that they look for people who take direction well, work hard, are willing to challenge the senior staff, while being humble enough to ask for help.

When we returned from our break, Pasha Moore spoke to us about fundraising. She informed us of the reasons individuals give to campaigns and the components of a finance plan. There are many reasons that people give, such as friendships, habit, to change or affect policy, but Moore let us know that the main reason that people give to campaigns is simply because they are asked. She also emphasized “the ask”. There are different ways of asking and you should always be confident and straight forward when asking people to donate money. Finally, she closed by reminding us to always thank the donors.

Seeing as the afternoon was turning into evening, we finished the last session to emulate a real campaign scenario with a “working dinner” of pizza and salad, while being able to meet and interact with our teams for the first time.

The weekend of campaign bootcamp consists of long days of training, finishing with presentations from each team on Sunday. Ironically enough, most of the LEAP Center students, Republicans at heart, were placed on Democratic teams. This might stem some interesting debate among peers.

Our first task as a team was to pick a name. This proved to be a great way to interact with our team for the first time and share ideas. After so much brainstorming we finally came up with our team names and began planning for our presentations. We shared our ideas on different political views, which should prove helpful in order to strategize for our campaign plans.

After our “working dinner” it was time to get back to our next presentation on volunteering. Executive director of the Dallas County Democratic Party, Taylor Holden, presented how volunteers are the building blocks to a campaign. We learned about recruiting, training, and rewarding volunteers. Volunteers will authenticate and build momentum for a political campaign. We learned the cardinal sins and commandments of volunteering such as never lie or skip training and building relationships with volunteers. Seen by most as the most important building block of a campaign, we sat with bated breath while taking in all of the complexities that volunteering entails.

Exhausted, we ended our first day of campaign bootcamp and headed back to the hotel. On our way back to the hotel we made a quick stop at the Capitol building for a goodnight selfie.

Excited about our day tomorrow full of training, we headed to bed ready to learn and soak up all that boot camp has to offer.

LEAP Center Preps for Campaign Bootcamp!

Six LEAP Center students started preparation for the New Politics Forum Bootcamp in the last twenty-four hours. Preparation included the drive to Austin, a fine meal at Shiraz Shish Kabob, and a morning of site-seeing around the Austin Area.

The meal at Shiraz Shish Kabob was entertaining, primarily because half of the students had actually never eaten Mediterranean food! After some Hummus, Tzatziki, Chicken Kabob, Lamb Kabob, Gyros, and Baklava, at least two of those three will probably go back for more.

After plans to kayak on Lady Bird Lake fell through because of the potential for bad weather and unsafe lake conditions, we decided to head north to Salado, a small tourist community that offered a morning full of fun! This included Salado Mercantile, Salado Glassworks, the Salado Sculpture Walk, the Salado’s Mud Pies Pottery and, of course, Salado Creek–which was quite full.

More to come following our first day at the Bootcamp!

Talking Character with David Brooks

By Kaitlyn Tyra–Ready for an evening in Houston, LEAP students departed from Huntsville eager to attend a World Affairs Council Meeting to learn more about how to achieve moral character. Upon arriving at the Junior League in Houston, LEAP students, many of whom were visiting a World Affairs Council event for the first time, were amazed at how large the event was. In a sense, it was a double blessing, because not only did we hear Brooks’s words of wisdom, but we also had the chance to see how the professional staff at WAC run such large events.

David Brooks, a New York Times columnist, bestselling author, regular analyst on National Public Radio, PBS News Hour, and a professor at Yale University, discussed the content of his latest book, The Road to Character. Brooks began by distinguishing between the two sides of every person, the internal and external. Citing Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik, he distinguished between Adam 1 and Adam 2. Adam 1 is the career oriented Adam, while Adam 2 is the internal Adam who seeks strong moral character. The Road to Character is about Adam 2.

Brooks hearkened back to the WWII generation, which spoke often of “chivalry,” “honor,” “gratitude,” and “country,” while the younger generations today tend to think more along the lines of “me.” Citing one example, he referred to a survey taken in 1950 asking high-school seniors if they considered themselves to be a “very important person.” Twelve percent said yes. When the survey was replicated in 2005, 80 percent of the high-school seniors answered in the affirmative.

Rather than chastise groups of people, however, Brooks’s primary goal was to discuss the lives of leaders he admires: Dwight Eisenhower, Dorothy Day, George Marshall, and Frances Perkins. He explained how the lives of these great leaders inspired the writing of his book and how their struggles led to their success and the acquisition of greater character. They groped, through failure and hardship, on the road to moral character.

Brooks ended his speech by answering questions from the audience and signing books.

LEAP students were fortunate enough to have our books signed and take a group picture with David Brooks. Many thanks to Ms. Killidar, Ms. Situm, Ms. Baskota, and the entire staff of the World Affairs Council for hosting such a wonderful event…

…and allowing LEAP students to take advantage of an opportunity to learn and better ourselves.

Following the event, LEAP students enjoyed a delicious meal at Jerry Built Homegrown Burgers. A juicy burger and crispy french fries were the perfect ending to a great evening, not to mention we had the chance to experiment with automated hand-washers. Amazing what you learn on LEAP Center trips.

As we departed back to Huntsville, LEAP students reflected upon our road and what more we can do to become better leaders for LEAP, Sam Houston State University, and our local communities.

LEAP Center Students Present to Walker County Republican Women

The LEAP Center has had many opportunities to travel, volunteer in the community, and attend events showcasing world leaders from across the globe. This past week, though, the advisory board had the chance to share the LEAP Center’s mission and accomplishments with the Walker County Republican Women at their monthly meeting. Although the LEAP Center is non-partisan, we were so fortunate to be invited by the WCRW President (Madilene Loosier) and Vice President (Terry Stivers) to present the goings on of our organization, and we look forward to the opportunity to make similar presentations around the community.

Attending the meeting and presenting were two completely different accomplishments for the LEAP advisory board. In order to be prepared, we started working about a month and a half out. It proved a great researching opportunity as we had the chance to look back and learn about the Junior Fellows and the legacy we strive to continue. Old blogs, pictures, and even scrapbooks gave us plenty of information to create a well-thought out and organized presentation. Once we had the research finalized, we moved on to practicing our speaking skills. We met multiple times to work on delivery and succinctly relaying our message as a Center focused on cultural programs, travels, internships, and volunteer work.

After much research and practice, the day of the meeting arrived and along with it, a few nerves. Although we were a bit anxious about speaking to a large group, the Walker County Republican Women welcomed us with such hospitality that those nerves were quickly quieted. President Loosier and Vice-President Terry Stivers made sure we were taken care of and introduced us to the women, making us feel comfortable.

We had the chance to mingle with various members of the community and even talk to SREC District 5 Representative Nita Davidson, and Senator Schwertner’s District Representative, Hayden Paul.

Finally, after a few unexpected technological challenges, we began our twenty-minute presentation on the LEAP Program and all that it entails. Nerves aside, we became impassioned by our goal to represent the LEAP Center appropriately and eloquently described the mission to enrich academic education through volunteerism, internships, travel, and cultural programs. Finishing up, we had the chance to answer some great questions from those in attendance as well.

It was an eye-opening experience to be able to present to leaders in the political spectrum of Walker County and see what skills are needed to prepare a speech, as we have seen so often in the past. Following our mission to enrich academic education, we were able to learn something valuable outside of the classroom and gain life experience while doing it. We would like to thank President Loosier, Vice-President Stivers, WCRP Chair Linda McKenzie and all of the Walker County Republican Women who welcomed us so graciously and are such wonderful examples of women in politics today.

The LEAP Center is non-partisan, consisting of members of Republicans, Democrats, and Independents.

A Morning with Alberto Gonzales

By Constance Gabel

Imagine overlooking the South Lawn of the White House—the Washington Monument in the distance, honking cars passing on 17^th Street. It’s a beautiful day in the Nation’s capitol, made even more magnificent because you are standing on the Truman Balcony of the White House with the President of the United States. This was the life of Alberto Gonzales, who served as White House Counsel and US Attorney General during the Bush Administration. Thanks to Lt. Colonel Yebra at SHSU, General Gonzales made a visit to our University, where LEAP Center and a smattering of other students engaged in an hour and a half discussing with the former Counselor to the President.

Born in Humble, Texas, Al Gonzales truly came from humble beginnings. His success, he says, comes from his parents and the attitudes they instilled, despite a lack of material comforts. In fact, he didn’t even have indoor plumbing as a child. As an adult, however, he excelled academically and occupationally. He graduated from Rice with his Bachelor’s Degree; he later graduated from Harvard Law. These accomplishments laid the foundation for becoming the first Hispanic male to make partner at Vinson & Elkins and the first Hispanic US Attorney General.

When asked about life’s turning points, Gonzales couldn’t pinpoint a single event. Instead, he noted that taking opportunities as they come along is a key to success. Nor, he said, did he seek out mentors. In his case, a mentor—George W. Bush—found him, another opportunity that he was quick to take.

Alberto Gonzales with Bush and Sandra Day O'Connor — Alberto Gonzales with Bush and O’Connor

General Gonzales spent little time discussing the controversies surrounding his White House years, but he did describe the job as perhaps the most difficult in the cabinet. While this took a toll on his family, he remains grateful for his time in the White House, and positive about his life in general.

For students, most of whom weren’t paying attention to politics during the Bush years, it was a positive, career-affirming discussion. LEAP Center member Austin Campbell introduced the former Attorney General, and students asked approximately 20 questions, with Gonzales answering them all patiently and even cheerfully, repeating his refrain to stay positive and take opportunities.

Speaking of which, we are very grateful to Colonel Yebra for this opportunity, and we plan to implement General Gonzales’s advice!

Law and Order Comes to SHSU

The Center for Law, Engagement, And Politics has hosted the 10th Court of Appeals for five straight years, and the Court’s latest visit offered an especially interesting set of cases.

The first case, Brett Shane Arnold V., The State of Texas, the Fourth amendment and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Code. Appellant Brett Shane Arnold and three other men had been canoeing and kayaking on the Navasota River when Game Warden, Leanne Winkenwerder, inspected their vehicle to determine if they had life jackets or had been illegally fishing or hunting. She found no evidence of that, but she did find marijuana, which was sufficient to convict him of drug possession in a trial court. Arnold’s appeal sought to suppress the marijuana, which he argued was found during an illegal search.

The 11:00am hearing was even more interesting, involving a wrongful death suit. In that case, Thomas Sinclair, owner of the Wispers “Gentleman’s Club” in Corsicana, Texas was appealing a civil trial that found him largely responsible for a patron’s death. The dispute stemmed from the patron’s dissatisfaction with a lap dance, which led to a complaint, an escalating argument, and then a whipping (with an actual whip) by the club’s owner.

The appeals hearings are a bit different when held at SHSU. The court allows the attorneys to turn to the audience (mostly students, but faculty, staff, and locals, too) and spend three minutes discussing the facts of the case. This is an unusual opportunity, allowing us to understand the legal arguments better. With an audience of 302 students, locals, and faculty and staff on hand throughout the day, it was quite an experience.

The Chief Justice also introduces each case with a brief lesson on the proceedings, how to find the decisions (http://www.txcourts.gov//10thcoa.aspx), and even an explanation for the seating arrangements for the justices.

The biggest treat for the LEAP Center students was the lunch with the justices and their staff. I was able to speak extensively with Chief Gray, while Austin had the chance to discuss his future with Justice Davis, and Karla, Megan, and Kaitlyn had the chance to speak to Justice Scoggins. I learned that Chief Justice Gray didn’t set out to be a judge, or even a lawyer. He obtained his BA at SHSU, and his MBA at A&M, before going to law school. He told me that the best quality he has in regard to judging is being able to see and argue both sides of any argument, which was a useful skill for him while working at Fulbright & Jaworski, before becoming a judge.

Finishing up lunch, the judges proceeded back into the courtroom to continue the rest of the afternoon’s cases. The cases ranged from the alleged sexual misconduct of an A&M student to jurisdiction issues regarding lumber companies in two different states.

After the last case of the afternoon, the three judges took photos with some of the LEAP center students and Chief Justice Gray humbly gave a statement to Hannah Zedaker from the Houstonian. All in all, the court proved to be just as informative and exciting as previous goers told us they would be, and left LEAP Center students feeling excited about the prospect of fighting their own cases in the same courtroom.

The LEAP Center brings the 10th Court of Appeals to SHSU annually. The 10th Court is scheduled next year for April 5, 2016. During the fall of 2016, the TX Supreme Court will hear cases at SHSU.

Let’s Talk–And Have Some Fun

After an eventful afternoon with Ms. Nancy Bocskor, LEAP Students headed to the Elliot T. Bowers Honors College Let’s Talk event for an evening of informative conversation with some of the state’s most esteemed professionals. LEAP students enjoyed diverse speakers ranging from FBI Special Agent and SHSU Alum Daniel Fuentes to Honorable Robert Eckels, President of the Texas Central High-Speed Railway.

Kicking off the event, President Hoyt was in attendance to speak briefly about the growth of Sam Houston State University and a few of its accomplishments. LEAP students received the privilege of enjoying dinner and conversation with a variety of speakers. Ariel Traub enjoyed dinner with Mrs. Barbara Cargill, Texas State Board of Education District 8 Member and Chair of the Board. She was impressed with the conversation and indicated the discussion offered “valuable insight to problems with our education system along with some possible solutions.” Kaitlyn Tyra, who also sat at Cargill’s table, echoed Traub’s sentiments, enjoying the opportunity to “ask questions concerning our schools and learn about changes underway.”

Karla Rosales and Megan Chapa dined with SHSU Alumni Ms. Patti Foster, a traumatic brain injury survivor. Megan Chapa found Foster “extremely inspirational!” and Karla Rosales found both the human story and the science behind it to be fascinating and encouraging.

Alex Galvan had the pleasure of having dinner and conversation with Dr. Carl Rollyson, Editor of the Hollywood Legend Series, and author of some 40 books—including two on Marilyn Monroe. According to Galvan, “it was wonderful to learn more about this icon, and get the back story on one of the 20^th Century’s most intriguing legends.”

After dinner, co-chair of the Let’s Talk Advisory Board and Dean of the College of Health Sciences, Michael Lacourse helped close the evening with remarks. But the end of the event wasn’t the end of the evening. The LEAP Center students had an opportunity to meet with local officials attending the events…

…speakers from other tables, and revisit with Nancy Bocskor, who stayed late to visit with the honors students.

Overall, Let’s Talk gave students the opportunity to converse with professionals whom they normally wouldn’t have the opportunity to interact with and gave them the opportunity to learn about topics personally interesting to each student. Many thanks to all the speakers, Ms. Jacel Angel, and the Elliot T. Bowers Honors College for a wonderful evening.

LEAP Center Hosts Second Bocskor Workshop: “Paths to Public Service”

By Kaitlin Tyra: Paths to Public Service

The LEAP Center has enjoyed having Ms. Nancy Bocksor in Huntsville for the week to encourage students to become engaged in politics and take action to make a change. During her Paths to Public Service lecture, Ms. Bocksor stressed the importance of gaining a sphere of influence before deciding to run for office. For students, this tip prompted many to think about their current sphere of influence, and what steps they could take to help position themselves for a career in public service.

Ms. Bocksor also discussed the importance of brand management when pursuing a path to public service. She defined brand management by calling on a definition offered by the founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos: “Your brand is what people say about you when you leave the room.” To underscore this point, Ms. Bocskor encouraged students to act professional, be engaged, and clean up social media accounts–all of which can constitute a personal brand. Generously, Ms. Bocksor was extremely helpful to students by giving ample advice on a variety of topics ranging from thank you notes to tips for internships.

To the students’ delight, Ms. Bocksor discussed some of her successes and her many experiences traveling the world to help women become engaged in politics. Students were amazed by the amount of traveling Ms. Bocksor gets to do and how unique her career is. However, the majority of the lecture Ms. Bocksor opened up for questions, giving students the opportunity to interact directly. Ms. Bocksor’s energy appeared contagious to the students and many thought her stories were inspirational, driving them to pursue a career in public service.

Students enjoyed getting to learn from Ms. Bocksor this week. For many, she helped instill a zealous attitude and helped give students a sense of direction in pursuing a career in public service. After enjoying some refreshments, Ms. Bocksor hurried over to the Wynne Home (with students in tow) to co-host a Film Festival with Dr. Carl Rollyson, a continuation of the learning process for students of the LEAP Center.

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