DFA Campaign Academy in Milwaukee, WI

Agenda:

Saturday July 26th through Sunday July 27th

9am-6pm each day

You have the power, now learn the skills! The Democracy for America Training Academy is coming to Milwaukee, Wisconsin for two days of exciting campaign training.

How many votes will it take to win in November? How do you find the perfect message and get it out to voters in your district? How will you raise enough money to pay for it all?

The DFA Training Academy will help you answer these questions and more.

At the DFA Training Academy, top campaign consultants with decades of experience give you the skills to run a winning campaign. Topics include: field planning, voter contact, fundraising, communications, volunteer recruitment and more.

Attendees will also get to hear directly from some of the most exciting 2008 candidates in their area and get a copy of the DFA Training Manual packed with over 180 pages of winning campaign info.

Refreshments will be provided throughout the day and a social event will be organized Saturday evening so you can mingle and network with other activists in your area.

The training will run from 9am to 6pm on Saturday and Sunday.

Click here to see a video of a previous training:

Lodging Info: We have secured a block of hotel rooms at a discounted rate for attendees to the training.

Super 8 Glendale/Milwaukee N. Area
5485 N Port Washington Rd
Glendale, WI, 53217 US
414-961-7272

If you plan on attending this training and have specific questions, call our Training Department hotline at DFA at 802-651-3200 Ext. 191.

If you are a candidate running for office and plan on attending, please email us at training(at)democracyforamerica.com and let us know.

Learn more about the DFA Training Academy at www.democracyforamerica.com/training

Weekend Training Agenda
Milwaukee, WI July 26th & 27th 9am-6pm each day

Saturday Morning
Introduction & Overview
Field Planning and Targeting
Volunteer Recruitment

Lunch

Saturday Afternoon
Fundraising Strategies
Voter Contact Tactics
Campaign & Event Planning
Developing Your Message

Sunday Morning
Getting Out The Vote (GOTV)
Fundraising Tactics
Working with the Media

Lunch

Sunday Afternoon (Elective Sessions choose 4)
Neighborhood Precinct Organizing
Volunteer Management and Development
Running Phonebanks and Canvasses
Fundraising: Call Time
Drawing Contrasts in Campaigns
Working with a Voter File

Training Presenters

Matt Blizek
Training Director, Democracy for America. A veteran of training in the political and corporate worlds, Matt Blizek began organizing in student and local politics and was elected vice president of the University of Iowa Student Body. Since then he has has done field and fundraising work for numerous campaigns including the DNC, MoveOn.org, Russ Feingold, and Jon Tester. Matt joined Democracy for America in 2007.

Michael Cook
Michael Cook is a veteran of more than 25 political campaigns at the local, state and federal level. During his tenure as Executive Director of the Democratic Party of Arkansas he helped revitalize and re-organize the state party. His work there earned him recognition by the National Journal's "Hotline" as one of Arkansas' Rising Stars in 2003, and the Arkansas Times proclaimed him the "Wizard of Voter Turnout" during the hotly contested 2004 campaign season. He is the only Arkansas Executive Director who has simultaneously served as Coordinated Campaign Director, overseeing the Democrats' most intensive field operation ever in a presidential election year. He was a member of then-Governor Clinton's campaign staff during the 1992 presidential race, serving both in New Hampshire and at the fabled Little Rock headquarters. Michael previously served as consultant with Southern Strategy Group, a political and governmental consulting firm in Little Rock. In 2006, he managed the first winning Democratic campaign for Arkansas Lt. Governor in sixteen years. Michael is a veteran of the United States Army Reserves and holds a bachelor's degree in History from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. He currently serves as the Chief of Staff for Arkansas Lieutenant Governor Bill Halter.

Bridget Dooley
Bridget is a political consultant specializing in field work and a union organizer. She has served as Field Director and Campaign Manager on a variety of Congressional and local races throughout the Midwest, taking on ruthless Republicans, timid Democrats, and the Chicago political machine. Bridget currently is works for AFSCME Council 31 in Illinois on a strategic campaign to organize the employees of one of the largest healthcare systems in the Chicago area

Carrie Giddins
Carrie Giddins served as the communications director for the Iowa Democratic Party for the 2008 Iowa Caucuses, helping run the most successful and most widely attended caucuses in history. A native of New York City, Giddins has worked in politics for over a decade. Before her year in Iowa, Giddins was the deputy communications director for EMILY’s List, a political action committee helping to elect democratic women. In 2004, she was the deputy communications director for John Kerry’s presidential campaign in Iowa. In 2002, Giddins worked at political direct mail in San Francisco, also doing general consulting for local and statewide California candidates. Giddins was the program manager for the League of Conservation Voters, running the GOTV effort in 42 states in the 2000 election. Just this year, Giddins launched Giddy Up! Communications a political communications consulting firm. In February 2008, she was named the political operative to watch by Politico.

Bryan Hageny
Bryan grew up in the fiercely contested swing state of Wisconsin, and is proud of its progressive tradition. While attending the University of Wisconsin he worked for Howard Dean, John Kerry, and Tammy Baldwin. Following graduation he served in a number of political and activist roles. To this end Bryan worked as an Assistant Director of a large canvassing office in Boston, then as an Organizer of Power Shift 2007 (the first ever student global warming conference at the University of Maryland), and most recently as a Community Organizer in Pennsylvania. Bryan was recently hired as DFA's Deputy Training Director.

More trainers to be announced soon...