'Elect Her' Training Targets Political Imbalance 

Registration Closes February 1 

Last year UAlbany successfully hosted its first Elect Her training.

ALBANY, N.Y. (January 15, 2016) – UAlbany will host a one-day training session, Elect Her, on February 6 to encourage and train college and university women to run for student government and future political office.

The nationally-recognized training program seeks to address a major imbalance in women’s political representation and is designed to encourage college women of all majors to take leadership roles.

The training is open to undergraduate and graduate students, and students do no need to currently hold any office. Registration closes on February 1.

“Our goal is to encourage women to run for office and also give them the tools and confidence to do so,” said event organizer and UAlbany Associate Director of Student Involvement and Leadership Elizabeth Conrad.

Elect Her will prepare students for leadership positions in student government, student organizations, elected office, and the workforce. Participants will learn how to mobilize a constituency, craft a message, speak and present confidently as a candidate, and network with local leaders.

Student panelists will include Graduate Student Association Kat Slye; Student Association President Jarius Jemmott; and National Pan-Hellenic Council President Chrisel Martinez.

The University at Albany is one of 50 college and university campuses across the nation to host Elect Her sessions during the 2015-2016 academic year, in partnership with the American Association of University Women (AAUW) and Running Start.

In 2014, Elect Her: Campus Women Win trained more than 1,000 participants on 50 campuses. Of the students who reported running for student office after the training, 78 percent won. Approximately 12 percent more students said they are considering running for political office after the training than before.

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