by Maddie Banfield
Colorado Mesa University’s Political Science Club had the opportunity to attend the Club 20 Capitol Conference in Denver. The students in the club had the chance to hear the Colorado State Treasurer, the Colorado Attorney General and many others.
The main reason for the trip was because of the local political group called Club 20. This group represents the Western Slope, and they ally with students to give them opportunities to have a voice, and provide them with education, support and networking opportunities. Club 20 gave the Political Science Club the chance to go to Denver earlier this month and supported them throughout the conference.
The students had the opportunity to network with professionals in that field. One of the speakers was the attorney general of Colorado, Cynthia Coffman. The club members said they loved listening to all the speakers, but one of their favorites was listening to Coffman.
“We got to sit down and have a Q and A with [Coffman], it was really personal and in a small setting,” club member Lucy Benoit said. “We got to be candid and ask her real questions.”
Another reason why the club went was so they could have that “out of classroom” experience. Many want internships and jobs when they graduate, so by going to the conference the students got to interact with those professionals. The students attended a reception party, where they were surrounded by big names who work in the Capitol.
“Because the [Political Science Club] has so many students who are about to graduate, the capitol was really interested in hearing from us,” Benoit said. “It’s rare that young people are into politics right now, and they all loved that so they wanted to give us their cards.”
The club would love to bring this opportunity back to the rest of political science students. The Political Science Club is very interested in bringing in new students into the club. They want these students to be able to attend this conference, show them how to network, and see what they could do in the future.
