Alumnus Update: Kristi Dougan '01

Passing this along from Kristi Dougan, '01:

This is a cool blog! I do check it every once in awhile for the alumni updates. It is interesting to see the diverse paths that GVSU PoliSci grads have taken. Considering that I thought my class of PoliSci majors was the coolest, it is really cool to see what students have done after we left our mark.

As for a personal update after a few years of trying to find a job as an educator, I landed a post as an assistant to Michigan's Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land. I served as her assistant for 2 and 1/2 years before taking on my current task of coordinating Michigan's various voter registration programs with an emphasis on mobilizing the 18-25 year olds to get registered and vote. Anytime you see the Secretary of State Mobile Branch Office on campus, I had a hand in it at some point. It is good to look out for your school! Since the SOS has been sending the mobile branch office to Grand Valley (2004-present), GV has been the most successful in registering students to vote surpassing by far MSU and U of M. On a more local level in November, I was elected to a second 4 year term on the Sparta Village Council. This experience has allowed me to put to practice many of the policy lessons I learned at GV. Besides as the top vote getter, I confirmed the one truth in politics--"name ID is all that counts" (or maybe it was all the hard work)!

Thanks for maintaining excellence in Grand Valley's Political Science Department!

Kristi Dougan

GVSU 2001