Minnesota Go Run 2010

Speakers and Instructors

Marie Wilson is President and Founder of The White House Project, former President of the Ms. Foundation for Women, co-creator of Take Our Daughters to Work, and author of Closing the Leadership Gap: Why Women Can and Must Help Run the World. She was also the first woman elected to the Des Moines City Council. “The White House Project is inspired when women from all walks of life realize that they are part of a larger network of women. When they join the public debate and enter the ranks of leadership in business, politics, and culture; and when they claim their citizenship, their voice, and their role in shaping the future of this country. Get to this training and get ready to be inspired and take your seat at the head of the table!”

Rhonda Briggins-Ridley is the Southern Regional Consultant for The White House Project and a lobbyist for Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA).  During the 2006 Georgia General Assembly, she successfully lobbied for the passage of legislation amounting to $48 million for MARTA’s operating budget.  Ridley is a skilled political consultant in the areas of GOTV strategies, public involvement, voter registration, fundraising and grassroots base building.  Ridley has organized grassroots GOTV efforts in Alabama and Georgia.  She has worked with hundreds of women candidates and turned out the women’s vote to place women in elective positions.  She has also served as the campaign manager for a number of women candidates.   Ridley supports and advocates for women’s and children’s issues in the legislative arena. In 2003, she earned a Juris Doctor from Jones School of Law.  She currently resides in Stone Mountain, Georgia with her husband Kenyatta. 

Karen R. Diver is the Chairwoman of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, serving as the chair of the tribal government and CEO of the reservation’s corporate and economic development boards.  She is currently serving as Vice-President of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe (MCT), and Chair of the MCT Finance Corporation.  Karen was a founder of the American Indian Supportive Housing Initiative, and she represents area tribes on the Indian Health Service Tribal Self-Governance Committee.  Previously, Karen served for three years as the Director of Special Projects for Fond du Lac and for eleven years as the Executive Director of the YWCA of Duluth. Karen holds a Bachelors degree in Economics from the University of Minnesota, Duluth, and a Masters degree in Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.  Karen attended Harvard as a 2002 Bush Foundation Leadership Fellow.  Karen has extensive board experience in the nonprofit sector including six years on the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits Board of Directors and the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota, serving two terms as chair of both boards.    Karen was a founding member of American Indian Community Housing Organization, the Duluth Community Action Program, Duluth Family Services Collaborative and the Duluth Human Rights Commission. She lives with her husband Arne Selnes in Brevator Township and has a two grown children.

Debra Fitzpatrick directs the Center on Women and Public Policy at the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota.  She leads a partnership with the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota examining the status of women and girls in Minnesota and leads research and outreach efforts in the areas of women and electoral politics, gender and judging, and women-centered non-profits.  As part of this work she conducts successful bi-partisan programming work with women legislators and local elected women.   She also led a research project examining the path to office and success rates of male and female Minnesota legislative candidates (between 1998-2008) and partnered with three non-profits, including the White House Project, to collect in-depth, original data from over 200 men and women potential and current candidates and program participants. In prior positions, she led a partnership with the National Governors Association (NGA), working with Governor led teams to develop research-based policy responses in the area of K-12 education reform, describe those responses in a highly accessed policy brief, and worked successfully with the same teams to advance policy changes in several states.  As part of her work in the School of Public Health, she helped design and implement training programs to engage HIV-AIDS patients (particularly women and minorities) in the design of clinical trials, explaining statistical and research concepts in ways that allowed patients to play a meaningful role in which research questions to pursue.  As a staff member with the Minnesota Senate, she conducted policy research and managed legislative agendas.  She began her career running successful political campaigns. 

Keesha Gaskins is the Executive Director of the League of Women Voters Minnesota (LWVMN) and the League of Women Voters Minnesota Education Fund (LWVMNEF). Before she worked with LWVMN she was the executive director of the Minnesota Women’s Political Caucus.  Gaskins holds a law degree from Northeastern University School of Law, and served as a law clerk for both the Minnesota Supreme Court and the Supreme Judicial Court for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. She worked as a trial attorney in the areas of products liability and employment law until 2006, most notably with the trial firm of Bowman and Brooke LLP. Gaskins also worked as a pro-bono appellate special public defender for the Minnesota Public Defender’s Office. Gaskins graduated with honors from St. Cloud State University with a dual major in Political Science and Criminal Justice in 1996.  She is the current chair of the Women of African Descent Giving Circle with the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota. She has served on over 10 non-profit boards, most notably with the board of directors for the Minneapolis YWCA, the Girl Scout Council of Greater Minneapolis, Minneapolis NAACP, Minnesota Association of Black Lawyers and the Board of Governors for the Minnesota State Bar Association. While earning her undergraduate degree at St. Cloud State University, Gaskins served as the Chairperson for the Human Rights Commission for the City of St. Cloud.   Gaskins was recognized as a Rising Star by Minnesota Law and Politics Magazine in 2004 and 2007. She has been a guest lecturer on issues related to women and politics, Minnesota’s political system, and on political reform at a number of colleges and universities across Minnesota. In addition to being a past Masters Trainer in Communications and Messaging for the White House Project, she will be a faculty in residence for the 2009 Tri-College NEW Leadership Institute in Moorehead, Minnesota. She also received political training with The White House Project, NAACP and the AFL-CIO.

Catherine Gray was eight years old, giving a rambling account of her day, when her mother lovingly suggested she "sum it all up in three good sentences". Catherine marks that moment as the beginning of her education as a communications trainer and public speaking coach.  After spending most of her adulthood as an entrepreneur and business owner in Houston, Texas, Catherine relocated to Minnesota where she ultimately discovered The White House Project.  Since 2007, now the Midwest Director of Strategy and Engagement, she travels nationwide as a trainer and coach to encourage and cultivate women leaders.  A screenwriter and filmmaker, Catherine is the recipient of several awards, including The Barry Morrow Screenwriting Fellowship in 2000 and Jerome Media Arts Grant in 2004.  Currently she is in post-production on her short film, "Grace on a Stick" and serves on the board of TVbyGIRLS.  Catherine attended Scripps College and earned a Bachelor in Fine Arts from Minneapolis College of Art and Design.

Pakou Hang is an experienced community and political organizer. She is currently working with Wellstone Action to increase power and capacity in immigrant communities. Prior to that work, she served as the Deputy Vice President of Field Operations for the Children’s Defense Fund, a national children’s advocacy organization based in Washington D.C. Hang has served as an Organizer with St. Paul Youth Services, the Minnesota Field Director for America Votes, Deputy Political Director for Senator Paul Wellstone’s 2002 re-election campaign, Campaign Manager for State Senator Mee Moua’s 2002 special election and a Community Organizer with TakeAction Minnesota. Pakou graduated from the University of Minnesota with a Masters degree in Political Science in 2008 and Yale University in 1999. She has conducted extensive research on voting behavior among New Americans and social capital of political refugees. In 2007, she contributed two essays to the book: Voices of Hope: The Story of the Jane Addams School for Democracy. Pakou is a recipient of the prestigious Hubert H. Humphrey Public Leadership Award and the Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans.

Liz Johnson manages the Vote, Run, Lead program in the region as The White House Project’s Midwest Regional Director She is a seasoned organizer and is dedicated to building advancing women leaders in community and politics. Since graduating from Grinnell College with a degree in Political Science, she has served as a Program Officer for the Women's Foundation of Minnesota, Legislative Consultant to the Minnesota Welfare Rights Coalition, Director of Low Income People Organizing for Power in Duluth and Community Organizer for both the Duluth and St. Paul Tenants Unions. Johnson is the recipient of the Minnesota Housing Partnership Right to Housing Award and The Minnesota Women's Press 2006 Changemaker Award for her work to advance women leaders in Minnesota.

Lisa Kivirist is a leading national advocate for championing the story and economic vitality of female farmers and rural women entrepreneurs, and serves as a distinguished Kellogg Food and Society Policy Fellow with the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP), focusing on women in agriculture issues. Kivirist is co-author, with her husband, John Ivanko, of the award-winning ECOpreneuring: Putting Purpose and the Planet Before Profits, a fresh approach to entrepreneurial thinking that blends protecting the planet with small business pragmatics and Rural Renaissance: Renewing the Quest for the Good Life, capturing the American dream of farm living for contemporary times. Kivirist writes a column spotlighting national policy issues for the Women, Food & Agriculture Network (WFAN) and also writes for publications such as Hobby Farm Home and is a lead writer for Renewing the Countryside, a non-profit organization showcasing rural entrepreneurial and agricultural success stories. Kivirist founded and directs the Rural Women's Project, an innovative venture of the Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Service (MOSES) that showcases and supports women-owned food-based businesses. She also runs FARM (Farm & Agriculture Resources for Media), a program of the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) supporting journalists writing on sustainable agriculture issues. Kivirist runs the award-winning Inn Serendipity Bed and Breakfast with her family on their farm in southwest Wisconsin, completely powered by renewable energy and considered amongst the "Top Ten Eco-Destinations in North America." Her culinary focus on organic, local and seasonal cuisine earned recognition in publications from Vegetarian Times to Country Woman and inspired her cookbook, Edible Earth: Savoringthe Good Life with Vegetarian Recipes from Inn Serendipity.

Liz Kuoppala works as the Executive Director for the Minnesota Coalition for the Homeless.  Additionally, she was elected to the Eveleth City Council in 2006,  appointed by the Speaker of the MN House in 2007 to serve on MNSCU's Trustee Candidate Advisory Council, and was the recipient of the League of MN Cities' 2008 Woman in City Government Leadership Award.  She has a BS degree in Chemistry from St. Cloud State University and a Masters in Advocacy and Political Leadership from UMD. This Spring, Kuoppala received the Ann Bancroft Leadership Award. 

Juanita Lewis recently moved from Minnesota to New York to run the Yonkers chapter for a statewide organization called Community Voices Heard. She works with low-income residents to change policies around jobs and housing.   Juanita brings with her an amazing track record of working on and raising money for successful campaigns in Minnesota.  Juanita was inspired to pursue a career working for progressive change in her hometown after attending Camp Wellstone. Shortly thereafter, Lewis began her organizing career with MN ACORN. In 2004 she served as a field organizer with the Kerry/Edwards Campaign in Minnesota's 5th Congressional District. The following year she worked as a field organizer in the successful re-election bids of both Mayor RT Rybak and Council Member Don Samuels. In 2006 she served as the campaign manager for Pam Costain’s successful run for school board and the Director of Campaign Operations for a sheriff’s race. In 2007 she was the fundraiser for the successful Melvin Carter City Council race.  In December of 2008, Juanita completed course work for her Masters of Arts degree in Advocacy and Political Leadership, while managing a successful Statehouse race.  Prior to leaving she served as chair for St. Paul Senate District 66 and as PAC chair for the MN Women’s Political Caucus.

Nevada Littlewolf is The White House Project's Rural Leadership Field Organizer. Nevada joined WHP after attending a Debate Boot Camp in 2007. She continued her involvement by helping plan and implement the truly historic rural training that adapted the Go Run political leadership training model to the needs of a rural community. Nevada is a member of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe and was the first Native American and only woman currently elected to the Virginia, MN City Council. Nevada's life experience provides insightful knowledge of rural communities along with a unique cultural perspective that bolsters the work of the Minnesota team. She is an artist and mother of two. 
 

Becky Lourey of Kerrick brought a strong sense of caring and commitment to progressive public service as the State Senator representing District 8 in east-central Minnesota. A former farmer, she co-owns a small business, Nemadji Research Center, with her husband Gene (deceased - Oct.12, 2008).  Becky and Gene are parents to 12 children (three deceased).  Her story is unusual and compelling.  As a teen, Becky won a variety of rifle marksman awards and was honored for taking down a large buck from more than 600 yards – shooting from one Montana mountain ridge to the next.  As a young women, Becky and her husband Gene were involved in urban revitalization efforts. Lourey received the Joan and Walter Mondale Award for Public Service in 2005 at the annual DFL Hubert H. Humphrey Day dinner in Minneapolis. Among her many other honors and awards for health care policy, the rights of women and children and political courage, she was recently included among the “most admired” persons in public service as selected by the Minnesota Women’s Press.  The year after she left office, Lourey was named “Best Politician” by City Pages (Minneapolis/St.Paul), Best of 2007. Lourey served in the Minnesota Senate from 1996 to 2006, following three terms in the House of Representatives.  Prior to serving in the Senate and House, Lourey was named in 1989 to the inaugural Minnesota Health Care Access Commission and had served as Administrative Assistant for the Northern Lakes Health Care Consortium in Duluth. A graduate of Little Falls High School, Becky Lourey attended Asbury College in Kentucky and the University of Minnesota.  Following her husband’s death, Becky has returned to their business, Nemadji Research Corporation (NRC), full time. 

Pamela Svec Punt is a City Councilor for the City of Shakopee, Minnesota. Shakopee is located in the southwest corner of the Twin Cities metropolitan area, 23 miles from Minneapolis, on the Minnesota River. Incorporated in 1857 as a booming river town, today Shakopee is the county seat of Scott County, one of the fastest growing counties in the United States. Additionally, she works as a Human Resources Manager at ev3, Inc., an endovascular medical device company headquartered in Plymouth, MN. Previously, Pamela has worked as a Director in Women's Leadership Development, Employee Experience, and Human Resources at Best Buy Co., Inc. and in Human Resources and Dot Com Business at Target Corporation. Pamela is a founder and board member of the VOICES of Conservative Women, a political action committee (PAC) focused on providing resources – financial and otherwise – to support fiscally conservative women running for office. She is also a Founding Member of The White House Project Minnesota Leadership Circle, a non-partisan non-profit organization that aims to advance women's leadership in all communities and sectors by filling the leadership pipeline with a richly diverse, critical mass of women. Pamela has Bachelor of Arts degrees in English and Theatre Arts from the University of Iowa and a Masters of Business Administration degree with an emphasis in Human Resources from the University of St. Thomas. Pamela is a multi-sport enthusiast, having competed in over twenty triathlons in the past five years plus multiple other running and duathlon races. She has two children ages thirteen and five.

Prairie Rose is an enrolled tribal member of the Three Affiliated Tribes of ND, descendent of the Sahnish/Arikara, Northern Cheyenne and Lakota Nations. She is the liaison to the Fargo Native American Commission with the Fargo Human Relations Commission (FHRC), where she currently serves as Chair. She has held faculty appointments with the Tri-College NEW Leadership Institute in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008. She has served as a cultural liaison with the Fargo Public Schools and Native American Programs since 1998 and has been a leading American Indian voice with local and regional publications such as the Fargo Forum and OPEN Magazine. She is past Development Director of Oyate Tokeya, a non-profit which serves former prisoners and children of prisoners in Lincoln, Nebraska as well as the Director of the All Nations Youth Program in Fargo, ND. She is currently running for ND District 45 State Representative.

Rose M. Sandersis a a civil rights attorney, educations activist, songwriter and playright living in Selma, Alabama. She has worked as cooperating attorney with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Ms. Sanders served as the first black female judge in Alabama. From 1979 to 1981, during her tenure as director of the Remote Claims Project, Ms. Sanders conducted an extensive study of black rural land tenure in ten southeastern states for the Farmers Home Administration under the auspices of the Emergency Land Fund. She has held numerous volunteer positions including president and volunteer director of the 21st Century Youth Leadership Project, board member of the Voter Education Project, state youth coordinator of the Jesse Jackson for President Campaign, and president and volunteer director of the National Voting Rights Museum. She has also conducted an extensive survey on the status of youth leadership development. Ms. Sanders graduated from Johnson C. Smith University in political science and economics, and received a law degree from Harvard Law School.

Minnesota State Senator Patricia Torres Ray (DFL – District 62) made history on November 7, 2006 by winning 81% of the vote and becoming the first Latina to be elected to the Minnesota State Senate. Prior to her election to the Senate, Torres Ray worked as a State Program Administrator for the Minnesota Department of Human Services. As a newly–elected member, she was selected to serve on the Senate's reorganization team that decided the committees and membership in the Minnesota Senate for the 2007 Session. Torres Ray was appointed Vice Chair of the Health, Housing and Family Security Committee. She also serves on the E-12 Education Budget Division; the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources Budget Division and the Education Policy committees. Torres Ray has 18 years of experience in public service and community organizing. She has two degrees from the University of Minnesota; a Bachelor's Degree in Urban Studies and a Master's Degree in Public Affairs from the Humphrey Institute. The Rays have two wonderful boys, Tomás and Patrick, ages 13 and 10.

Elizabeth Towle is the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe’s governmental affairs administrative assistant and community organizer. Elizabeth travels around Minnesota encouraging civic engagement among the state’s American Indians. She also leads tours of the Mille Lacs Reservation in East Central Minnesota for international visitors, teaching them about the Band’s unique culture and history and learning about the political backgrounds of different countries. Elizabeth is also an active participant in Get Out The Vote, ReNEW Minnesota, and the Native Vote Alliance of Minnesota. As chair of Native Vote Alliance, she organized the first-ever cross-tribal gubernatorial candidate forum leading up to precinct caucuses in 2010. Candidates discussed several issues important to American Indians, including tribal sovereignty, the environment, and health care. The forum served as a way for American Indians to be proactive and engaged early in the political process. Elizabeth is also active in state and national politics and will serve as election director of two legislative districts this fall. This past year, she co-convened the DFL endorsement committee, was a member of the DFL platform commission, and served as a state delegate for the third time. Elizabeth attended the 2008 Democratic National Convention as a staffer for the Mille Lacs Band and interned with U.S. Representative Betty McCollum’s office in Washington, D.C., in 2007. A graduate of Hinckley-Finlayson High School, Elizabeth is attending Pine Technical College’s business program. In her spare time, Elizabeth enjoys watching roller and demo derbies, fundraising, and traveling. Elizabeth is proud of her Ojibwe heritage, especially of her ancestors who retained their land and culture despite the challenges they faced.

Commissioner Rose Thelen serves District 1 in Wright County. As a commissioner she serves on over 25 committees, task forces, and boards related to human services, public health, water management, parks, aging, and youth. She has also been working with a core group of law enforcement, criminal justice and advocacy representatives to adapt the St. Paul Blueprint to Wright County in order to strengthen its collective response to domestic violence. In this capacity Rose can apply the skills she has developed over the last thirty years working to end domestic violence,as an advocate, activist, lobbyist, batterers group facilitator and as an expert in the "coordinated community response" approach. In addition to her elected position as a Commissioner, Rose works as a Technical Assistance Partner for Praxis International, providing training and technical assistance to programs nationwide receiving federal Violence Against Women Act funding. She is co-founder of the Gender Violence Institute in Clearwater, MN and trains domestically and internationally on domestic violence.

Gia Vitali's start in politics came as an intern at the Wisconsin legislature during her senior year of college. After completing her degree in Political Science and Women's Studies in 1998 from the University of Wisconsin, Gia returned to the twin cities where she began her career. Gia spent four years working on Capitol Hill for Congressman Bruce Vento and his successor Congresswoman Betty McCollum. In 2004 Gia returned to Minnesota and led the GOTV team in Saint Paul for Kerry/Edwards and managed the 2006 Hennepin County Attorney campaign for Andy Luger. During a brief break from campaigns, Gia served as political director for Progressive Majority in Minnesota. There she recruited, trained and helped elect progressive champions to state and local office. Most recently Gia managed Paul Thissen's campaign for governor. Gia's experiences in politics have ranged from communications and constituent services to public policy and field organizing. She recently accepted a new position with Colle + McVoy as a public affairs counselor and crisis manager where she looks forward to putting her skills built over ten years in electoral politics to work. Gia is a native Minnesotan and lives in Minneapolis.