by Mary Radigan
March 16, 2009

The 2008 presidential election created great excitement in the political process, even among a generation too young to vote. Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin brought keen attention to the female side of politics, something The White House Project aims to develop with young women interested in political leadership and civic participation.

For the first time in Michigan, the nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization joined forces recently with the Girl Scouts of Michigan Shore to Shore to present the Ms. President Event. A small, but enthusiastic group of Girl Scouts spent a day in Grand Rapids to learn the history of women’s leadership, gain some insight from local female leaders and form teams to create a pseudo presidential campaign.

They also earned a new badge, Ms. President, created in 2002 by Girl Scouts of the USA and The White House Project.

Lucy Joswick, brand manager in Michigan Shore to Shore’s Grand Rapids office, which coordinates activities for about 1,300 troops in 30 counties primarily west of Lansing, says a new program called The Girl Scout Leadership Experience has replaced the organization’s stereotypical emphasis on homemaking skills and crafts.

“The scouts are far different now, and we focus on leadership skills and building strong, confident women,” Joswick adds. “There is increasing demand for more career oriented events. We had a lot of momentum with the election and we can’t let that go.”

Shannon Garrett, Michigan field director for The White House Project, says the purpose of the Ms. President Event is to help educate and train high school girls as potential presidential candidates, as well as promote the necessary skills to reach their goals.

Women make up half of this country’s population, but the proportion of women to men in elected positions is only 24.3 percent, according to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University. In Michigan’s House and Senate, the proportion is 25 percent, “the highest we’ve ever been, and that’s not exactly very representative of the state’s female population,” says Garrett.

Founded in 1998, The White House Project typically recruits and trains women for leadership positions. The organization opened its first Michigan office in 2007, located in Grand Rapids. Programs are scheduled in seven states this year, including Michigan, with information available at www.thewhitehouseproject.org/voterunlead/trainings/.

“This is a unique program with the girl scouts, but we tend to target women under the age of 35 because they are the most politically under-represented in the country,” she adds. “We don’t have a lot of role models out there, especially women political leaders. We need to get more into the pipeline.”

Meranda Fairchild of Gaylord adds color to her goal list.

At the Ms. President Event, a leadership panel consisting of Martha Gonzalez-Cortes, CEO, and Mindy Ysasi, board chairwoman, both of The Hispanic Center of Western Michigan, and Kristin Salerno, fundraising chairwoman of the Progressive Women’s Alliance of West Michigan, offered advice about preparing for political careers.

Ysasi is active with Michigan State University’s nationally acclaimed Michigan Political Leadership Program. She was unsuccessful for an elected position in the past, but now is a candidate for a seat on Grand Rapids Community College’s board of trustees.

She told the scouts it’s okay to run and lose, “just get out and do it; be involved in your community.”

With a variety of experience, the women told the group there is no one pathway to politics, whether it’s behind the scenes or as a candidate.

“It’s important to have our voices heard, and health care and education are two issues in which women have a lot of experience,” says Salerno. “The White House Project gives women the nudge they need to run for office.” She said Hillary Clinton’s presidential bid and the mainstream media’s intense coverage raised more awareness. For Michigan, it helps to have Jennifer Granholm as the state’s first female governor, Debbie Stabenow as a U.S. senator and Terri Lynn Land as secretary of state.

Gonzalez-Cortes said she believes she makes a difference behind the scenes, including research and policy work. As a woman of color, she finds men in particular don’t take her seriously unless she’s discussing diversity issues. There can be an “attitude” when women want to discuss or set policy about anything beyond children’s or home-related issues, she adds.

Sixteen-year-old Lauren Mitten has been involved in high school politics in Big Rapids for two years as the elected treasurer on the student council. In October, Lauren was elected by the Girl Scouts’ Regional Council to represent Michigan Shore to Shore at a national convention in Indianapolis.

“It was very cool and it gave me a taste of politics,” she recalls. “We discussed policies and voted on proposals.”

As Lauren worked on her career goals and plan of action, she said she has an interest in politics “and what people care about and why they vote the way they do.” Running for a congressional spot is intriguing, but holding the position of secretary of state, either state or national, also is appealing, she says.

Joswick says the career goal-setting is essential for the scouts to understand what is needed down the road as a political candidate.

During the campaign planning, the roles of candidate, campaign manager, volunteer coordinator, press secretary and finance director were discussed. They created campaign speeches, fundraising ideas, methods to reach voters, plans for volunteers and questions a press secretary might face.

Girl Scouts work on their career goals as part of the Ms. President Event. Photos by Mary Radigan.

Meranda Fairchild, 14, of Gaylord, decided she would rather work behind the scenes, but says the Ms. President Event was worth the three-hour trip to Grand Rapids.

“This really opened my eyes to the good side of politics and the pure form of involvement by people,” she says.

The development of a campaign plan provides concepts, which can be used immediately for school or community positions, as well as refinement of that plan to tackle leadership positions in the future.

The scouts were encouraged to take what they had learned and use their career goals to approach local candidates as campaign volunteers for everything from school board to city council races. To learn more, the young women were advised to attend community and government meetings, ask questions and get involved.

“This is just one small start, but everything you do helps you on your way,” Joswick says. “We want to launch this and encourage girls so they can run for president in 2028.”

Mary Radigan is an award-winning journalist whose work includes 26 years as a columnist and reporter for The Grand Rapids Press until her retirement last year.