The comments below are from the 2005 Summer Program participants:

• I know that one can be qualified because of their unique perspective and/or nontraditional path to politics. I want to do a lot of unelected service in my early career – I didn’t know before NLO what it meant to be a legislator--now that I have seen it I am more likely to run.

• NLO has increased my awareness about how and where to go to gain knowledge, how to better communicate my concerns and solutions, how to get others on board to work toward our shared goals and most importantly how to work for the greater good.

• I really appreciate the diversity of the women participating in, working on, and presenting to this conference. I don’t normally get the chance to work with women who are older than I am, or married, or who have children, in a political and academic setting as my peers.

• This conference filled out my awareness of politics in general and some specific areas. It gave me a greater comfort level in this arena. The quality of speakers, their interest in and support of us were phenomenal; I feel I have a whole cabinet full of resources for my future, including the conference attendees. The dedication and passion of each staff member, and their attention to detail were all evident.

• I have always felt a passion about the importance of political involvement, however being around all the women the conference has made me feel a much larger responsibility to stay politically active.

• I was surprised by how moved I was by the sights, sounds, and activities going on at the Capitol. The best experience was sitting on the Senate floor; I actually contemplated what my role in state government would look like. The senator that I sat with was extremely specific about what was going on, and I was constantly thinking “I can do this!” 

• As this conference continues I really believe that connections and partnerships are the best tool for change that we have. I’m learning to see all perspectives and have respect for the differences.

• I had seen myself as an outsider at this conference because I am majoring in something outside the traditional political or policy realm. But now I can see and identify the ways in which my career can be political.