Voter Registration!

         (pictured above: our president Jennifer Baldwin counting voter registration forms)


The presidential election is creeping up on us, and like the Obama campaign, UTK College Democrats are showing no sign of slowing down.  This past week, we registered more than 400 college students to vote!  Several members of UTK College Democrats, camped out on pedestrian walkway (on campus) from 9:00 am - 5:00 pm last Friday, to get the word out about registration.  We are hard at work getting ready for a second term with President Obama and also hot on the local campaign trail as well.  Many members of UTK College Democrats have also been working on the campaign of Gloria Johnson (State House District 13).

Check out our Facebook page for more information on our events and ways to get involved!

College Debate

College Democrats participated in a debate last Wednesday, April 4th, with two representatives from College Republicans, and We the People (a Libertarian group on campus).  Andy Vickers, our president, and Hunter Threet, our treasurer, represented us in the debate.  The debaters tackled topics ranging from social issues, foreign policy, and more.  Congratulations to Andy and Hunter for an excellent performance!

Left to Right: Andy Vickers (second) and Hunter Threet (third)

A Special Guest

We Were honored to have Mayor Madeline Rogero attend our meeting last Monday, as she celebrated her 100th day in office.  Mayor Rogero gave us a brief overview of her experience working for Governor Bill Haslam (former mayor of Knoxville) and her big plans for Knoxville's future.  Mayor Rogero expressed she has seen many monumental changes take place since she began working in Knoxville around 20 years ago and is working to keep the momentum going.  Mayor Rogero said her biggest goal coming into office was to assemble the right team for the job (a team with balanced personalities and skills), and now that she has assembled her dream team, tackling issues like budgeting, land preservation and more.

Mayor Rogero shared with us one project in particular that she is excited about.  Working with the Legacy Parks Foundation, she is hoping to make Knoxville and surrounding areas in eastern Tennessee, a more beautiful place.  Sustainability and preservation are her goals.  Eastern Tennessee is a great place for recreational outdoor activities and she wants people to be more engaged.  There are plans to open an outdoor adventure center that will provide all the information one would need to explore the area and rentals of the equipment needed as well.  A website has been launched, OutdoorKnoxville.com, that also provides information about outdoor recreation.  The site provides everything you would need to know.  It provides information on where to go, different outdoor exploration events, interest groups for different activities, and a general overview of all outdoor recreation Knoxville has to offer. 

It sounds like Mayor Rogero is off to a great start.  We were thrilled to have her at our meeting and are excited to see what's in store for Knoxville's future. 

CDA Conference

The spring semester is in full swing and we have hit the ground running.  What's next for UTK's College Democrats?  We will be headed to the Windy City for the 2012 Winter CDA (College Democrats of America) Conference.  The conference takes place on March 9th though the 10th.  This is an awesome opportunity that will provide our members with training sessions hosted by CDA and for the first time, YDA (Young Democrats of America).  With the 2012 elections around the corner, this opportunity to join forces with other Democrats is very important.  We are ready to fight and keep Obama in office!