Newsroom Archive for 06/7, 2010

College Leaders Program Class of 2010
Day 7—Friday, June 4
Reported by: Dakota Thomas, the University of Virginia's College at Wise

The day began at a somewhat muggy 9 a.m. for us. It seems, though, that the AC in the building finally works, which means the problem has gone from being too hot in the building to being entirely too cold in the building, but we digress. The first thing we did was have class with Dr. Kidd, which we later continued after our speaker.

Class this morning went along with our readings regarding the General Assembly, the Executive Branch (namely the Governor), and the Judiciary. We discussed such ideas as institutional inertia; the tendency of a legislative institution dominated by one party to diverge from its intended purpose of representing everyone, become dominated by a few elites, and be unable to reverse itself; and the idea of institutional creep–in the same one-party-dominated system, the internal bureaucratic systems expand more than needed in order to make it look like everyone is actually doing some work for their constituents.

We went on to discuss the Republican reforms to the House of Delegates when they took over, from the streamlining of the committee and subcommittee systems to the practical elimination of the seniority system, all of which gave enormous powers to the Speaker. We then delved into the issue of African American members of the legislature, their inability to get anything done early on, and the formation of the Virginia Black Legislators Caucus. We then discussed how the Governor had become more important in recent times due to Federal responsibilities being shifted onto states, and we briefly covered the Judicial Branch.

Our speaker for the day was Andrew Lamar, Special Assistant for Policy Development to Governor McDonnell. What followed was an interesting, although somewhat sleepy-eyed, discussion of the state of the Republican Party in Virginia, and the usual round of intense questions from my classmates.

After dinner, the Youth Programs Coordinators took us all to Fridays After Five, a sort of local Charlottesville tradition, where they introduced us to a group of international students who were studying topics closely related to the ones we are studying. It was an absolute pleasure to meet them; they were all very funny, although it was hard to hear anything over the bands playing nearby. Later, some classmates and I went out for dinner where we discussed some tough topics in politics. And that was today in the CLP.

College Leaders Program Class of 2010
Day 8—Saturday, June 5
Reported by: Woodly Claircius, Liberty University

From the moment I stepped into this program, my world and perspective completely changed. The College Leaders Program has taught me to work hard, work in teams, and most importantly to work with people with different opinions. Today was not any different. We had two wonderful speakers, Randy Marcus, a campaign manager in Virginia, and Chip Muir from the Attorney General's office.

Chip Muir really captured my attention. He works for the Attorney General's office where he prosecutes people who violate child safety through pornography, identity theft, and internet bullying. One particular story that Chip told remains in my mind. He told us about a time when governments in several nations had to work together to catch a blackmailer in Ghana who was scamming a Virginia Delegate. Chip was determined to catch the thief, even when his boss told him it would be too hard, but his determination is what ultimately helped catch the blackmailer. Chip Muir's dedication shows what Sorensen is all about.

College Leaders Program Class of 2010
Day 9—Sunday, June 6
Reported by: Katelyn Temple, Christopher Newport University

Our day started thirty minutes later than normal at 10 a.m. We all went to class prepared to hear from Senator John Miller, who has been actively involved in the Hampton Roads community for thirty years. I was especially excited to hear from him, as I spent the past four years in Newport News. Senator Miller arrived with his wife and began by telling about his initial political experiences. He said that the Democrats often wondered if Republicans were spending as much time in caucus working to make Democrats look bad as Democrats were spending working to make Republicans look bad. He eventually learned the answer to this question was yes. With this, Miller emphasized that he was there to get things done, not to compete with the Republican Party. To accomplish his goals, he was one of four members of the Commonwealth Caucus. The Commonwealth Caucus is made up of two Republicans and two Democrats. These four members focus on redistricting, electing judges, and cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay.

I really appreciate the fact that Miller is not guided by party lines, but instead, what is best for Virginia. He told us not to be so involved in partisan politics that you miss the bigger picture. I found this statement very inspirational and relevant to what we have been learning at Sorensen. As leaders we will not always work with people who share our exact views and ideals. In order to succeed, we need to be able to work with people who have different views. If we only focus upon party affiliation there is very little chance of reaching compromises. I found Senator Miller very inspirational. Hearing from a Democrat who works closely with Republicans and is not afraid to stray from his party at times was very refreshing.

After Senator Miller, we watched the film Across the Aisle, a documentary about the 2007 Political Leaders Program class. This film stressed the importance of bipartisanship just as Senator Miller did. One individual in the film said that the more you talk to people, the more ideas you generate. I fully agree with this. If we shut others off because of opposing views, we greatly limit ourselves. The group was excited to see that the PLP class took part in several of the same activities as we have. Just as we did, the PLP took part in an exercise demonstrating the dangers of labeling. Many participants said Sorensen opened them up to new ideas and views, which is exactly what I have experienced so far!