The College Democrats of Madison hosted a city panel Friday night to encourage student involvement in local politics while discussing issues surrounding the city of Madison.
The panel featured District 8 Ald. Eli Judge, District 4 Ald. Mike Verveer, Madison School Board President Arlene Silveira and Dane County Board Supervisor Wyndham Manning. The city officials hoped to call more student attention to local politics by attending the city panel and explaining their respective offices.
Judge told students he represents between 10,000 and 13,000, a large majority of them UW-Madison students, as alder of District 8. His position oversees many different departments and works with businesses while working to promote the well-being of Madison. Judge also sits on the Public Safety Review Board and the Housing Committee.
It's very difficult to get the word out there that we exist,"" Judge said. ""A lot of students coming from wherever town, wherever state they're from probably did not have much interaction with their local governments.""
Manning described his position as one of 37 Dane County Board members who oversee large budgets.
""Our Human Service budget is about $220 million, and a lot of that goes to fund programs that directly affect people in the downtown area,"" Manning said.
Manning's department also oversees many different grants each year, including local nonprofits used for student projects or on-campus entities.
As Madison School Board President, Silveira makes policies affecting nearly 25,000 students in the school district.
Silveira said the School Board does a lot of community outreach that closely involves the Common Council.
""Our city panel is a great opportunity for students to educate themselves about local issues and become more involved in their community,"" College Democrats Chair Claire Rydell said.
