College Democrats Executive Board

President - Paydon Miller  Paydon Miller With Senator Russ Feingold	Major: Political Science/Print Journalism Hometown: Green Bay, WI Bio:  Paydon was born in Milwaukee, but lived most of his life in Green Bay.  Having grown up in a conservative neighborhood, Paydon eagerly joined the College Democrats upon arriving in Eau Claire.  He was elected Secretary the following semester and elected President the semester after.  In his time with the College Democrats, Paydon has worked on numerous campaigns, including serving as the volunteer coordinator for President Barack Obama’s campaign. In winter of 2008, Paydon ran a statewide campaign and was elected Communications Director of the College Democrats of Wisconsin.  Majoring in both Print Journalism and Political Science, Paydon hopes to use his experience to eventually run for elected office himself.  In his free time, Paydon writes slews of short stories and serves as the Director of Development for The Flip Side, the free press publication of UW – Eau Claire.
Vice President - Jodi Kwarciany Jodi Kwarciani with State Senator Kathleen Vinehout	Major: Political Science/Pre-Law    Minor: French   Emphasis: Legal Studies Hometown: Milwaukee, WI Bio:  Current Dems V.P. Jodi is from the Milwaukee, Wisconsin area and her love of politics began at the age of ripe old age of 11 when watching Al Gore debate during the 2000 elections. Because of the extreme lack of liberals in her town, she was delighted to find others like herself after coming to UWEC in the fall of 2007. Since starting with the Dems, she’s had the privilege of working on numerous local, state, and national campaigns, the most recent being Judge Shirley Abrahamson’s, where she worked as an event coordinator. In the summer of 2008, she also had the extreme joy of interning for State Sen. Kathleen Vinehout at the state capital. At UWEC, Jodi majors in Political Science/Pre-Law with a minor in French and an emphasis in Legal Studies. She hopes to eventually attend law school where she wishes to specialize in campaign law. If all of her political aspirations fail, she’s opening up a sandwich shop. Salami or roast beef?
Communications Director - Justin Koch	Major: Broad-field Social Studies   Emphasis: History Hometown: River Falls, WI Bio: Justin Koch became interested in politics post the 2000 election Bush v. Gore, but there was limited opportunities in his home town of River Falls.  After becoming a student at UWEC, he re-found that interest in politics his second semester when he joined the college democrats.  Justin is best known for his work on the Obama campaign as"Dickie the Democratic Donkey".  At UWEC, Justin is currently studying to be a High School History teacher.  Justin will be going to basic training in Feb of this coming year as he has joined the Air Force Reserve.  Also, Justin likes to play disk golf, hockey, and intramural football and his shoe size is a 8 and a half.
Secretary - Anja Meerwald	Major: Pre-Nursing   Hometown: Edina, MN Bio:   Anja is a freshman from Edina, Minnesota, which is a suburb of the Twin Cities. Her interest in politics was sparked as a freshman in high school in the mandatory government class and at the same time becoming involved in Debate helped spur that interest. In her community it was hard to really get involved and loves being at UWEC where the majority of campus is blue and where the Democrats are so active. She has never worked on a campaign before but is very excited to do so. Unlike most of the Exec board she is not a Political Science major, she hopes to get into the nursing program (fingers crossed) and then join the Peace Corps. Teaching English abroad is also something she would like to try.
Treasurer - Allison Kimble	Major: Political Science   Minor: Public Relations Hometown:  Coon Rapids, MN Bio: My name is Allison Kimble. I am a junior majoring in Political Science and minoring in Public Relations.  I want to earn my masters degree in Public Policy and eventually become a lobbyist.  I joined the College Democrats last year to get involved in the elections and ran for treasurer in December 2008.
Public Relations Director - Chrissy Duszynski	Major: Political Science    Minor: Creative Writing   Hometown: Shawano, WI Bio:  I am Chrissy Duszynski. I am a Junior at UWEC. My major is Political Science with a Legal Studies emphasis. I hope to go to Law School someday and purse a career as a lawyer. I love politics and enjoy working on campaigns to elect good Democrats into office. I have been actively involved in politics since the age of 15, and I am a member of both the Shawano County Democratic Party in my hometown, and the Eau Claire County Democratic Party whilst at school. I have worked on various campaigns including both John Kerry’s and Barack Obama’s Presidential races, helped organize events with the UWEC College Democrats, and even volunteered for President Obama  when he came to Green Bay for a Town Hall Meeting this past June.  It‘s an honor to be the PR Director for the UWEC College Democrats and I hope to help campus stay BLUE!