With Election Day just around the corner, Wittenberg students Paige Wright, class of 2022, and Emma Klemmensen, class of 2021, both political science majors, took on an exciting summer internship despite COVID-19 with the League of Women Voters Greater Dayton Area (LWVGDA).

A non-profit, non-partisan organization that promotes democracy through educating and informing citizens, the duo worked to establish a social media plan to help the league reach a greater audience for voting and election information.

“In particular, we wanted to work on reaching college-age individuals who often do not vote,” Wright said. “Wittenberg has many amazing opportunities for students, including internships and work experience that help provide young voters a source of voter information if they are interested.”

Their internship began in June 2020 and ended in mid-August. Due to COVID-19, the two met virtually once a week with their supervisor to talk about plans for the week.

“Most of this internship was online for social media purposes, and COVID-19 made it impossible for us to meet in person, so we met over Zoom to talk about our posts and our intentions with them going forward,” Wright added.

The following is a brief synopsis from each student about their summer work:

“My name is Paige Wright, and I am from Dayton, Ohio. I am a junior double-major in political science and economics. I have been involved in Student Government as well as many events for the Dance and Theatre Department. Right now, I am enjoying being a lead orientation assistant (OA), the president of the Swing Dance Club, and part of the many other different clubs at Wittenberg.

This summer, I was given the opportunity to work with the League of Women Voters Greater Dayton (LWVGDA) to establish and run their social media with a goal to spread voter and election information. This internship has allowed me to use creative thinking and analytical research to figure out how to best spread non-partisan voter information. In the future, I would like to continue my involvement in non-partisan organizations, like the LWVGDA, as I further my education in law school. Working as an intern for the LWVGDA has opened my eyes to the way non-profit organizations act, and creating non-partisan voter information content has allowed me to delve deeper into the importance of voting in our democracy. I believe that my social media internship and my experience at Wittenberg will continue to provide me with these amazing opportunities and encourage me to pursue my future goals.”

“My name is Emma Klemmensen, and I am from Springfield, Ohio. I am a political science major set to graduate in 2021. During my summer internship with the LWVGDA, I worked on a social media project with Paige Wright, another Wittenberg student. We created content about voting and other political issues for their Instagram and Facebook pages. Wittenberg is a great school. Dr. Heather Wright (associate professor of political science) and Dr. Staci Rhine (professor of political science) were the ones that made me fall in love with political science, a major I would have never considered if I hadn’t taken their classes. The other professors in the department helped further my passion for it.

Political science has made me think so much more deeply about my political experiences growing up, and how it has affected my political opinions compared to others. When I first came to Wittenberg, I thought that political science started and ended with the American federal government. I had never considered what else might be a part of it. To quote Dr. James Allan’s (professor of political science and chair of the department) mug that he gives to all the poli-sci students: ‘Political Science will change the world.’ One thing I have learned from working with the league is that people do want to learn about and are interested in politics. They do want to educate themselves, but they might not have the resources to do so, which is why the LWVGDA is such a great resource to do so.”

To see Wright and Klemmensen’s work this summer during their internship, visit the LWVGDA @leagueofwomenvotersdayton on Facebook.

About the LWVGDA: The League of Women Voters was created in May 1920 after the passage of the 19th amendment. Since its founding, the LWVGDA has expanded to state and local branches with goals to expand voting rights, promote equal representation in government, and create an equitable and just legal system. The League wishes to accomplish their goals by encouraging the informed active participation of citizens in government, increasing understanding of major public policy, and remaining non-partisan in providing voting information. Website: lwvdayton.org/