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The MAPL program contacts a number of outstanding leaders in advocacy and politics to ask them to agree to be part of MAPL's pool of community faculty. The following are some of the guest speakers involved with the Fall 2005 Semester program.
Josh Syrjamaki of America Votes was a community faculty team member for our MAPL Labor course on Saturday, December 17.Starting January 1, 2006, Josh Syrjamaki will begin serving as the Minnesota state director of America Votes, a coalition of many of the largest membership-based groups in the country, who have come together to increase voter registration, education and participation in electoral politics.
From December 2003 to December 2005, Josh was the national coordinator of the United Steelworkers Associate Member Program (AMP). The AMP is an innovative project that allows anyone to join the Steelworkers union even if they don’t have a union at their workplace. The AMP conducts community organizing drives around union/environmental partnerships, global justice, workplace rights, and protecting good U.S. jobs.
Josh was the deputy campaign manager for the late Sen. Wellstone in 2002, overseeing general operations such as volunteer recruitment, grassroots organizing, and the use of new technologies to mobilize supporters.
From 1991 to 2002, Josh worked in the Senate office of Sen. Paul Wellstone in a number of positions including constituent advocate and policy liaison. He helped constituents cut through federal red tape to get the benefits and services they had earned. He worked with regular Minnesotans to craft and pass legislation.
He also worked in the office of the Minnesota Attorney General on consumer protection and advocacy.
Josh graduated from the University of Minnesota with a degree in economics in 1991.
Josh lives in Bloomington, Minnesota, with his wife Jodi and daughter Olivia.
Pakou Hang, of the Jane Addams School for Democracy, was a community faculty team member on Saturday, December 10, for MAPL 5119 Techniques for Nonprofit Advocacy.
Tim Stanley, of Pro Choice Minnesota, was a community faculty team member on Saturday, December 10, for MAPL 6004 Political Organizing and Communication,
Randall Tigue, Attorney, Randall Tigue Law Office, PA, was a community faculty team member on Friday, December 2, for our MAPL Courts course.
David Strom, Executive Director of Taxpayers League of Minnesota, was a community faculty team member on Saturday, December 3, for our MAPL Political Process course.
Jenson v. Eveleth Mines: Lois Jenson and five other miners presented to a full house on Saturday, November 19. This lecture was the third of the three Public Affairs Lecture Series for the semester.
Greg Wersal, an attorney integrally involved in Minnesota rules regarding judicial elections, was a community faculty member for both the MAPL Courts and MAPL Campaigns courses on Friday, November 18.
Congressman Jim Oberstar, U.S. House of Representatives, was our second Public Affairs Lecturer for the year on Saturday, November 12, in Griggs Center.
Representative Patti Fritz of the State House of Representatives was a community faculty member for our MAPL Techniques of Nonprofit Advocacy on Saturday, November 12.
Scott Fischbach of MCCL was a community faculty member for our MAPL Political Organizing class on Saturday, November 12.
Scott Fischbach began working in politics at a very young age. During his 30 years of political involvement he has served on hundreds of local, state and national campaigns including three Presidential races.
Before assuming the position of MCCL Executive Director in May of 2001, Scott Fischbach had extensive experience in all facets of the pro-life movement on the local, state and national levels.
As the founder and owner of Coalition Productions Inc. (CPI), an international political consulting firm, Fischbach has worked with numerous candidates and non-profit organizations.
While serving as the Executive Director of MCCL, the organization has seen enactment of pro-life initiatives at the Minnesota state legislature, including Woman's Right to Know Law, Unborn Child Pain Prevention Act and Positive Alternatives.
In 2002 Campaigns and Elections Magazine named Fischbach a "rising star" in politics and in 2005 Minnesota Law and Politics dubbed Fischbach and his wife "king and queen of the red" in reference to their Republican party influence.
Scott is married to State Senator Michelle Fischbach and the couple have two teenaged children.
Don Hickman of The Initiative Foundation was a community faculty member for our MAPL Small Communities course on Saturday, November 12Don is the program manager for Planning and Preservation for the Initiative Foundation in Little Falls, MN. He is responsible for overseeing the Healthy Lakes and Rivers Partnership program and for administering grants and training which support community lead efforts to support parks, trails, and open space, and to encourage informed land use choices. Prior to joining the Foundation, Don spent ten years as a private consultant. He has also worked for the Massachusetts Audubon Society, New England Rural Community Assistance Program, the National Park Service, and as a laboratory director for Gunnison County (Colorado).He has a Bachelor of Science Degree in biological sciences from the University of Minnesota, and a Masters Degree in water chemistry from Western Colorado State College. He was working on a Ph.D in aquatic biology at Utah State until he met his wife, who made him a better offer.
David Lillehaug, Former United States Attorney and Attorney for Frederikson and Byron, P.A., was a community faculty member for the MAPL Courts course on Friday, October 28.
Todd Holman with The Nature Conservancy was a community faculty member for the MAPL Small Communities course on Saturday, October 29.
Todd Holman is the Central Minnesota Program Director for the Nature Conservancy. In this capacity he works closely with local municipalities, community organizations, business leaders, local agencies and area residents to promote collaborative conservation initiatives in the central region. Holman's background assists his current work. Prior to joining the Nature Conservancy, Holman spent fifteen years in Planning and Zoning administration in one of the fastest growing areas of the U.S. He served as Assistant Zoning Administrator for Todd County; as Planning and Zoning Administrator for Crow Wing County; and as the community development director for the City of Baxter.
Jay Schmidt of Isaiah was a community faculty member for the MAPL Techniques of Nonprofit Advocacy course on Saturday, October 29.
Steve O'Neil of CHUM and the St. Louis Co. Commissions was a community faculty member for the MAPL Techniques of Nonprofit Advocacy course on Saturday, October 29.
Steve O'Neil is Co-Program Director of Churches United In Ministry (CHUM) and the Gabriel Project Lead Organizer building constituency and Church involvement around poverty issues of housing, employment and health care. He is also a St. Louis County Commissioner and an Organizing Trainer for the UM School of Public Health. His previous experience was the Program Manager for STTOP (Stop Teen Tobacco Use Organizing Project) with the American Lung Association in which he was responsible for environmental tobacco smoke public policy in northeast Minnesota and teen access and use of tobacco products. He also has been a Lead Organizer and Director of the Homeless Organizing Project at the Damiano Center in Duluth. Additional organizing experience was with the Land Stewardship Project, Family Farm Organizing Resource Center, Community for Creative Non-Violence, and Minnesota COACT.
Arthur J. Rolnick, Minnesota Federal Reserve Bank, joined our MAPL morning classes and provided our first Public Policy Lectures for the community this academic year on Saturday, 10/22/05. Nancy Larson joined our MAPL Small Communities course on Saturday, 10/22/05.
Nancy Larson is the Executive Director of Minnesota Association of Small Cities. Nancy Larson has served as the executive director of the Minnesota Association of Small Cities for over 17 years. In this position, she works as a lobbyist at the State Capitol, serving as an advocate for cities with populations less than 5,000 before the legislature and state agencies. She is well-known around the state for her work on behalf of small communities.
Nancy also works closely with other organizations interested in strengthening the economic and social base of small cities. She currently serves as a member of the board for the University of Minnesota Morris’ Center for Small Towns and for the University of Minnesota Humphrey Institute’s Community Assistantship Program (CAP).
On the political front, Nancy was the DFL endorsed candidate for Lieutenant Governor in 1994 and for State Auditor in 1998. Occasionally, she also serves as a political commentator on radio and television shows.
Michael Ciresi and Roberta Walburn of Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi joined our MAPL Courts class as community faculty team members on Friday 10/14/05.
Michael V. Ciresi is Chairman of the Executive Board of Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi, LLP, in Minneapolis, and has been a trial lawyer since 1971. His areas of practice are government relations/regulatory law, intellectual property litigation, mass tort, personal injury, special business situations, and business trial and litigation. Mr. Ciresi was also a candidate for U.S. Senate in Minnesota, 2000. He serves on multiple civic association boards and has a long speech resume from "Damages in Mass Litigation" as faculty member, Rimini, Italy, in 2005, to "Minnesota Tobacco Litigation" as faculty member, Fargo, ND, 1999, to "Professionalism in the Law," Virginia Beach, VA, 1986.
Roberta B. Walburn is of Counsel for Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi, LLP. Her areas of practice are antitrust and trade regulation, mass tort, and business trial and litigation. Ms. Walburn has also been Senior Fellow to the World Health Organization, Law Clerk to the Honorable Miles W. Lord, Chief Judge, U.S. District Court, Legislative Assistant to U.S. Senator Paul D. Wellstone, Staff Reporter for the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and Financial Reporter for the Evening News in Buffalo, N.Y..
Honorable Gerald W. Heaney, U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit, joined our MAPL Political Process class on Saturday, October 15.
Judge Heaney is the Senior Circuit Judge for the U.S. Eighth Circuit Courts. President Lyndon Johnson appointed him to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit in 1966. He took senior status in 1988. Judge Heaney is distinguished in his work with the desegregation laws in the U.S. public school system. The Judge is also a decorated World War II veteran. Locally, he has served as a member of the University of Minnesota Board of Regents; drafted the law to create the Duluth Port Authority; and helped to secure funds for multiple UMD programs and buildings. In 2001, the Judge received an honorary degree from UMD. He has been a Duluth area resident since 1945.
Robbie LaFleur joined our MAPL Political Process class as a community faculty team member on Saturday 9/17/05.Robbie LaFleur is the Director of the Legislature Reference Library and has been with the Library for almost twenty years. She remembers the days when researching a current bill meant walking over to the Capitol and getting a print copy, and a fax machine was considered cutting-edge. Ms. LaFleur has long been an advocate of the early adoption of new technologies to improve the Library's services to the Legislature and the public; the Library's Web page now includes an RSS feed, and the Library delivers many of its current awareness services via e-mail. She is a past Chair of the National Conference of State Legislatures Legislative Research Librarians Staff Section. Her undergraduate degree in Scandinavian Studies and graduate degree in Library Science are both from the University of Minnesota.
Dr. James Read joined our MAPL Civic Engagement class as a community faculty team member on Saturday 9/17/05.Dr. Read is a professor in the Department of Political Science at the College of St. Benedict and St. John’s University, MN. He holds a Ph. D. and M.A. from Harvard. Among his publications is Power versus Liberty: Madison, Hamilton, Wilson and Jefferson (University of Virginia Press, 2000). The book asks the question: does every increase in the power of government entail a loss of liberty for the governed? It examines how four key Founders - James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, James Wilson, and Thomas Jefferson - wrestled with this question during the first two decades of the American Republic. This 18th Century conversation about the complicated interconnections between power and liberty brings fresh perspective to contemporary debates about the size and scope of government.
Dr. Read is currently working on Seductive Consensus: Calhoun’s Minority Veto and Federal Union. This work critically examines Calhoun’s argument for government on the basis of consensus among all key interests – vesting each significant interest with formal veto rights -- rather than by majority rule. Calhoun’s thought is treated both in its original historical context (including its connection to slavery) and with regard to contemporary echoes including the 1998 Good Friday Agreement for Northern Ireland, the 1974 constitution of the former Yugoslavia, contemporary theories of “consociational democracy,” and the recent states’ rights resurgence on the U.S. Supreme Court. Calhoun’s diagnosis of potential pathologies of majority rule is persuasive; his remedy is flawed but deserves attention because of the seductive appeal of the idea that deeply divided societies can function by consensus.
He also has written dozens of articles on topics ranging from “Alexander Hamilton’s View of Thomas Jefferson’s Ideology and Character” to “Natural Law,” as well as book reviews and conference papers. Additionally, he completed fellowships with the International Center for Jefferson Studies in Charlottesville, Virginia, and the Harvard Program on Constitutional Government.
Additional community faculty team members for the MAPL Campaigns and Elections course were: