NEWS RELEASE
Contact: David West (west@nsula.edu)
News Bureau
Northwestern State University
Natchitoches, LA 71497
(318) 357-6466
5/29/2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NATCHITOCHES - Lauren Michel, a student in the Louisiana Scholars’ College at Northwestern State University, has been chosen to participate in two national conferences involving some of the country’s top students.
Later this summer, she will represent Louisiana at the Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship Student Congress in Lexington, Ky. In January, she will attend the University Presidential Inaugural Conference in Washington, D.C.
Michel, a liberal arts, humanities and social thought major from Luling, has served as treasurer, speaker of the senate and vice president in Northwestern’s Student Government Association. She is a member of Alpha Omicron Pi Fraternity, Purple Jackets and the Order of Omega. Michel also worked with the Louisiana Legislature last summer.
“The conference in Kentucky should be very interesting for me,” said Michel. “It's an area I haven't studied a great deal about, so I am looking forward to learning more. The Inaugural Conference will be a once in a lifetime experience that I am honored to be able to attend. I am excited about the chance to see the federal government work up close.”
The participants in the Inaugural Conference will gain a deeper understanding of the history behind the electoral process and the traditions surrounding the presidential inauguration. Inaugural Scholars will have the opportunity to interact with a major presidential candidate, White House officials, congressional staff members, political experts and other VIPs. After witnessing the inauguration, scholars will see the inaugural parade, as the president, vice president and their families make their way down Pennsylvania Ave. from the Capitol to the White House. To further honor and celebrate Inauguration Day, scholars will attend a Black Tie Gala Inaugural Ball.
In addition to participating in inaugural events and festivities, scholars will have the opportunity to explore the historic sites and monuments of our nation’s capital, as well as engage in panel discussions and political debates with political experts and commentators.
The Student Congress will expose a top college junior from every state to a curriculum in diplomacy, dialogue, listening skills, negotiation and mediation.
The five-day curriculum is sponsored by the University of Kentucky Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce and Martin School of Public Policy and Administration, Transylvania University and Ashland, the Henry Clay Estate, will focus not only on theory, but also on the practices of statesmanship. The history and context of Henry Clay, his world and his approaches and contributions to statesmanship, will be at the center of the course. Students will hear from top speakers from around the world on conflict resolution, decision making in a shared power world and national and international relations.
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