1. AGENTS
OF
CHANGE
SATURDAY 02.13.16
ALLEGHENY COLLEGE
2nd Annual
Allegheny College
Center for Political
Participation

2. Thank you for joining us for the second annual Agents of
Change conference! This year we are exploring political
participation through the themes of social justice,
volunteerism and activism, community organizing, and
student power.
We hope you leave here with a better understanding of
the power that you have as students and citizens, and
how to use these tools to be agents of change in your
community.

3. Event Program
9:00-9:30 : Breakfast // Registration // Tabling
Tippie Alumni Center
9:30-10:30 : Keynote Address : John Fetterman
Tippie Alumni Center
10:30-10:45 : Informal Networking
Tippie Alumni Center
10:50-11:45 : Breakout Session 1
Campus Center
11:50-12:45 : Breakout Session 2
Campus Center
1:00-2:00 : Lunch Panel : A Conversation on
Community Organizing
Tippie Alumni Center
2:00-3:00 : Issue Mapping Workshop
Tippie Alumni Center
3:00 : Closing Remarks
Tippie Alumni Center
MC: Emerald Wright Collie and Lakiea Simmons
Bonner Leader Program - Allegheny College
Wifi: ACGuest Password: GatorsFeb16

4. Morning Keynote : John Fetterman
After his term of service, John went on to earn a Masters in public
Policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government where he
focused on finding solutions in social work, business, and public
policy to confront urban challenges and economic inequality. He
then returned to Pennsylvania, to utilize his AmeriCorps experience
and Masters work to establish a GED program in the town of
Braddock. Once a booming steel town where Andrew Carnegie
established his first mill, Braddock in 2001 was one of the poorest
and most troubled communities in the commonwealth, facing steep
population decline and high rates of poverty.
In 2005, John was encouraged and motivated by his students to
run for mayor. Now in his 3rd term as mayor, John has worked
tirelessly with the town of Braddock to facilitate incredible
community change. During his 10 years as mayor, he has worked
to break the cycle of violence in Braddock, and rebuild the
community by creating jobs, getting youth engaged, and bringing
creative urban policy solutions to Braddock.
John Fetterman was born and raised in
Pennsylvania. He attended Albright
College – and after his education joined
Big Brothers/Big Sisters. Inspired by his
work with his ‘little’, John was motivated
to do more. In 2001 he began a two year
commitment to AmeriCorps. During his
service, John worked to establish
computer labs and GED classes for
young mothers and Fathers in
Pittsburgh’s historic Hill District.

5. BreakoutSession1 10:50 - 11:45
Relational Organizing ­ CC 206
Daniel Doubet ­ Keystone Progress
"First you talk to one person face to face, then you talk to
the next, and the next..." ­Cesar Chavez. This is how you
organize. But what do you say to those people? What
questions do you ask? How does this become power? In
Relational Organizing, participants will examine successful
approaches to individual meetings. Learn how to build
meaningful relationships with potential donors, volunteers
and leaders, one conversation at a time.
Overcoming Barriers to Student Voting ­ CC 301
Mikki Franklin and Heather Bosau ­ Allegheny College
Center for Political Participation
Mikki and Heather ­ both fellows this year with Allegheny
College's Center for Political Participation ­ will discuss
common issues surrounding voter registration and
participation on college campuses before providing
students with a scenario, for which they will be invited to
brainstorm potential solutions to such problems.
From Activism to Organizing: Building Long­Term
Student Power ­ CC 302
Megan Bart ­ PIRG Campus Action
PIRG Campus Organizer Megan Bart will lead
this workshop to give students a moment to consider how a
series of campaigns can build toward a sustained culture of
activism on campus, and give them tools to strategically
evaluate campaign goals, targets, and strategy.

6. BreakoutSession1 10:50 - 11:45
The Human Factor: Responding to the Crime of Human
Trafficking ­ CC ­ A 103
Leah Johnson ­ Students United Against Human
Trafficking
This session will explore international, national, and local
trafficking statistics, as well as the risk factors associated
with victims of human trafficking: particularly sex and labor
trafficking. The goal of this program is to empower the
participants to advocate on behalf of the victims and
survivors of human trafficking in an effort to end this crime.
I Am for the Child ­ CC 303
Cindy Knight, Alicia Foster ­ CASA
Not all volunteer programs are the same. Not all activists
are the same. Cindy Knight and Alicia Foster will explore
the role of the CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate)
volunteer and how we can also be activists. After today they
hope you will learn that volunteerism and activism go hand
in hand for some non­profits.

7. BreakoutSession2 11:50 - 12:45
The Purple Foam Activity: Fitting in to Social Change
CC ­ A103
Lee Scandinaro ­ AmeriCorps VISTA ­ Lake Effect
Leaders
This purple foam workshop is an interactive activity which
demonstrates the four important components of social
change: Direct Service, Education, Advocacy, and
Community Organizing. Participants will locate
themsleves in the each of these roles and develop
strategies for solving a fictional issue. Folks
will leave continuing to understand the importance of
traditional forms of social change, such as direct service,
but also expand their model of social change to include
community organizing against root causes.
COIN: Developing the Mindset for Community
Organizing ­ CC 206
Heather C. Moore, Sophie Dodge, Alex Marrero, Joe
Gallego, Izoduwa Idehen­Amadasun ­ Allegheny College
This student and faculty collaborative workshop will
introduce participants to some of the key tenets of
community organizing, present contemporary organizing
issues to solve, and place audience members in the minds
of organizers. This workshop would appeal to individuals
who are interested in organizing as a career path and for
former organizers who want to discuss their diverse
experiences in the field.

8. BreakoutSession2 11:50 - 12:45
Building Student Power ­ CC 302
Matt Cordeiro ­ Gamechanger Labs
From the #MillionStudentMarch to #InSoliarityWithMizzou,
students all over the country are organizing their
communities and winning. Come learn about some of
awesome student and youth organizing making waves
across the country and discuss the strategists and tactics
behind the movement. We're going try and take the best
lessons from these campaigns and figure out how to apply
them to your campus or community.
The Food Recovery Program ­ CC303
Shasta Mullenax ­ AmeriCorps VISTA ­ Lake Effect
Leaders
This session will focus on what food recovery can do for a
community, how volunteers and communty members can
get involved, what outcomes for food recovery look like,
and the larger context that surrounds issues of food
insecurity and food waste in America.
Student Voices in the Service­Learning Movement
CC 301
Delaney Heard, Jonah Raether, Samantha
Samakande, Caitlin Brown ­ Allegheny College
This workshop will focus on the importance of
incorporating student voice into an institutional academic
framework in a meaningful and engaging way. Participants
will leave with tools for equipping students and faculty to
reflect on their civic engagement/learning experiences in
meaningful ways. Folks will also reflect on what students
have to offer as a resource for faculty, peers, and
community partners.

9. A conversation with current and former community
organizers about their experiences in the field and the
lessons they learned along the way.
Megan Bart ­ Campus Organizer
PIRG Campus Action
Andrew Bloeser ­ Assistant Professor
Political Science ­ Allegheny College
Daniel Doubet ­ Northwestern PA Organizer
Keystone Progress
Nathan Malachowski ­ Community Organizer
Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement
Julie Wilson ­ Assistant Professor
Communication Arts/Theatre ­ Allegheny College
Lunch Panel: Community
Organizing
Moderated by Joseph Phelps
Americorps VISTA - Lake Effect Leaders
Mission Empower

10. Apply the tools gained throughout the day to organize
around current issue areas that you are passionate
about.
David Odusanya
Bonner Service Leader ­ Bethesda Children's Home
Lee Scandinaro
Lake Effect Leaders AmeriCorps VISTA ­ Meadville Neighborhood
Center
Osa Edebiri
Bonner Service Leader ­ The ARC of Crawford County
Taylor Hinton
Wellness Program Coordinator
Shannon Doherty
Bonner Senior Intern
Zach Cramer
Lake Effect Leaders AmeriCorps VISTA ­ United Way of Western
Crawford County
Autumn Vogel
Year of Meadville Organizer ­ Fahrner Fellowship
Lakiea Simmons
Bonner Senior Intern
Issue Mapping Workshop

11. Info Tables:
Year of Meadville: The Year of Meadville is designed to contribute to
ongoing community efforts. From the Community Wellness Initiative
to the Downtown Meadville Business Alliance to the Meadville
Neighborhood Center, events will bolster current work happening in
our community.
Lake Effect Leaders ­ An AmeriCorps VISTA Project: Lake Effect
Leaders is a collaborative project between Allegheny College,
Edinboro University, Gannon University, and Mercyhurst University
that is supported by the Corporation for National and Community
Service. Lake Effect Leaders place recent college graduates in local
nonprofit organizations to focus on community empowerment and
breaking the cycle of poverty. Our project enhances the
organizational capacity of host sites by leveraging the skills and
abilities of recent college graduates.
Keystone Progress: Keystone Progress is a multi­issue progressive
advocacy organization that combines cutting edge online organizing
and communications with rapid and hard­hitting earned media
strategies. Year round, Keystone Progress will work to engage
citizens from across the state around issues of immediate state or
local concern.
PIRG: PIRG Campus Action is about solving problems and getting
results on today’s environmental and social issues. PIRG Campus
Action is recruiting organizers to work with Student PIRGs, the long­
established team of organizers who run campaigns on college
campuses across the country.

12. Info Tables:
Meadville Time Trade: The mission of Meadville Time Trade is to
broaden connections with people in the community, empower
individuals, and offer an alternative to the monetary system. A
service exchange or time bank is a network of individual,
organizational and business 'members' that provide services, track
and bank their hours and then spend those hours to get their own
needs met. A service exchange is NOT a barter network, since
nothing is 'exchanged'. One 'member' provides a friendly, neighborly
favor to another and records the time they spent doing so.
Allegheny College Center for Political Participation: The Center for
Political Participation (CPP) partners Allegheny College students
and faculty with local, state, national, and international communities
to undertake interdisciplinary approaches to both learning about and
addressing political, economic, and social challenges.
PULSE: PULSE cultivates a community of young servant leaders to
transform Pittsburgh. We invite talented university graduates to
partner with Pittsburgh nonprofits for a year of service and
leadership.
Allegheny College Alternative Spring Break: Be an Agent of Change
this spring break (March 19 ­ 26) by spending a week doing
service! The Allegheny Alternative Spring Break program is a
weeklong immersive volunteering and living experience that
challenges students to think critically, react to problems faced by
members of the communities they are involved with, and make a
difference in someone else’s life as well as their own.