On Saturday, September 14, from 10am to 5:30pm in the Carlton Union Building's Stetson Room, Stetson University will host its fourth annual "Politics 101" conference, a free, nonpartisan, one-day crash course on political campaigning.


"The goal of Politics 101 is to provide area students and citizens free education in the craft of making political and social change," says co-organizer, David Hill, a political scientist at Stetson University. "Stetson values engaged citizenship, and Politics 101 is a way for us to advance this value to the benefit not only of our students, but all interested area students, citizens and aspiring community leaders."

Politics 101 will feature workshops led by campaign operatives, political scholars and community leaders of varied political stripes. Workshop leaders will, among other things, show participants how to build grassroots campaign organizations, create winning campaign strategies, analyze data to make informed decisions, use social media, and fundraise. In addition, area political organizations and campaigns will be present during a networking fair to provide information about their candidates or causes, and to recruit interns and volunteers.

"Politics is not a spectator sport," says Kevin Winchell, conference director. "Whether you're a Republican, Democrat, independent or else, whether you want to run for public office, manage a candidate or issue campaign, or simply learn how ordinary citizens can help make change in a democracy, Politics 101 is a great way for citizens to learn how to turn their passion in to policy by electing the change they want."

Registration for Politics 101 is open to everyone, and attendance is free. The conference is non-partisan. For more information about Politics 101 or to register, visit www.stetson.edu/politics101.

Pre-registration is required for attendance on the listed website. Also, attendees should arrive at the workshop between 9:00 and 9:50am to register.