CommUnity Conference

Register, grab breakfast, and network

*Registration will continue throughout the day

Welcome, Overview of Civic Health in Wisconsin

Join Mary Beth Collins, J.D., M.A., Executive Director of the UW-Madison Center for Community and Nonprofit Studies, for an engaging discussion with expert panelists who will offer an array of perspectives on current legal considerations and civil society efforts affecting communities and democracy in Wisconsin and beyond.

• Dr. Katherine J. Cramer, Professor and Natalie C. Holton Chair of Letters & Science
• Dr. Mark Sidel, Doyle-Bascom Professor of Law and Public Affairs at UW Law School
• Peter Skopec, Director of Advocacy for the Secure Democracy Foundation

• State of the Media Landscape*

Join Tamia Fowlkes, Public Investigator Reporter and UW-Madison alumna, for an engaging panel discussion with representatives of key segments of the current media landscape – including broadcast and traditional media, nonprofit news sources, and neighborhood and community-driven efforts. Hear about timely, influential issues for the media and civic health – including the state of local news and mass media, misinformation, artificial intelligence, and grassroots efforts and platforms.

Additional Speakers:

• • Judy Davidhoff. editor of Isthmus, an independent, local news source based in Madison
  • Matthew Defour, State Bureau Chief, Wisconsin Watch
  • Randy Hawke, GM at Mid-West Family Broadcasting and Member of the Board of Directors of Wisconsin Broadcasters Association
• Teaching for Democracy in Wisconsin Schools (Panel Discussion)

One of the primary purposes of public education in the United States is to prepare young people to be engaged and informed citizens in our democracy. This session brings together leaders representing a broad range of perspectives to explore the successes, opportunities, and challenges of teaching for democracy in Wisconsin in 2026. The session will include demonstration of classroom practices that support students in developing civic skills, interactive elements, and a Q&A from the audience.

Speakers:

• • Kate Ullman, Co-Chair, Wisconsin Civic Learning Coalition
  • Jeff Wright, Superintendent of Sauk County Schools
  • Akshay Manna- UW Freshman, Middleton HS LegSem Majority Leader
  • Lynn Glueck- Program Director for The Discussion Project

Lunch

Welcome Remarks from Dean of the UW-School of Human Ecology, Soyeon Shim.

Flashtalks from Local Leaders on Civic Health Strategies with Discussion by Expert Discussants:

Discussants:

• Marjan Ehsassi, Executive Director, FIDE, North America
• Dr. Alex Takh, Associate Professor of Political Science, UW-Madison, and Director of the Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership
• Jenny Vaughan, Managing Director, Human Rights and Inclusive Business and CommNS Advisory Board Member

Presenters:

• Philanthropy Farming
  • Sam Cooke – Cooke’s Charitable Cattle Company
• Bridging the Divide
  • Hallie Haim – Tommy G Thompson Center on Public Leadership
• The Neighbor Game
  • Libby Falck – Forward Games
• Reimagining Civic Dialogue with LSTN2U
  • Jacob Hicks – La Follette graduate student, Product Manager and Lead Developer of LSTN2U
• Rooted Together: Timebanking and Mutual Aid with the ECCHO Program
  • Veronica Hereford – ECCHO Rock County Local Program Coordinator
• What the Fed? – a student-led civic engagement initiative using AI to build young civic participants’ understanding of policy
  • Cody Ke and Stephen Li
• Strategies for Confronting Dips in Volunteerism
  • Dr. Laura Schlachter, Americorps
• Faith-Based Efforts to Build Civic Health in Wisconsin
  • Council of Churches
• The Arts: Tools for Building Civic Health
  • Creative Wisconsin

Youth Advisors: A Promising Intervention for Civically Healthy Institutions and Communities

• Kiley Komro, Juvenile Justice Specialist and Youth Coordinator for the Governor’s Juvenile Justice Commission
• Maurice Newton Jr., Youth Voice Commissioners
• Kendra Wenger, Youth Voice Commissioners
• Dr. Matt Calvert, Professor of Civil Society and Community and Studies

Civil Society Organizations Navigating Civic Health

• CDL Training: A Community-Rooted Model
  Nydia Martinez , Executive Director of Latino Academy of Workforce Development
• Relational Mapping: An Approach to Holding on in Troubling Times

          Jenna Cushing-Leubner -Associate Professor of Multilingual Education at the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater

• Chrysalis Effect: A Holistic Approach to Mental Health, Employment, and Well-being

           Amy Yonker, LPC, WIBC, Director of Programming for Chrysalis Inc.

          Matthew C. Strickland, Senior Vocational Peer Specialist at Chrysalis Inc.

Running for Local Elected Office: Who’s getting involved, how do they prepare, and what issues are they navigating?

• Abigail Becker, UW-Madison UniverCity Alliance
• Sam Kaufmann, La Follette graduate student, Village of Waunakee Trustee
• Henry Fries, undergraduate student, Dane County Board Supervisors representing District 5
• Zach Vruwink, La Follette graduate student, League of Wisconsin Municipalities chief operating officer, Wisconsin Rapids mayor from 2012-2020
• Bill Oemichen, UW-Extension’s Local Government Education
• Ellen Zhang, Madison City Council alder for District 8, UW-Madison student

• Wisdom-Drop Lightning Talks on Key Civic Health Themes*

Our afternoon session will include a round of concise, engaging presentations from experts in our network on key concepts and program models that will build your knowledge base and toolkit for Civic Health.

• • Civil Society in Autocracies: Adaptation and Resistance

                            Erika Anna, Jingyi Ma, and Isabella Richter

• • Civil Society and Democracy: Foundations and Assumptions

                            Anna-Marie Opgenorth, Meghann Norden-Bright, Oona Mackesey-Green

• • Civic Assemblies and Leadership Wisconsin

Dr. Amber Wichowsky, La Follette School of Public Affairs

• • Inspiring Global Awareness: Increasing International Education at Times of Uncertainty

Tony Jing , Hunter Vierck, Jason Malina- Contemporary International Relations Association

• • Community-University Mixers: a Model for Facilitating Partnerships

Cory Sprinkel – Morgridge Center for Public Service

• • Monitoring and Mitigating Political Violence in Wisconsin

Benny Witkovsky – Bridging Divides Initiative and Princeton University

• • Mapping Civic Understanding: Using Walking Tours in Early-Stage Engagement

Nicole Ramer- Morgridge Center for Public Service

• • Media Manipulation and Discernment 101

Lisa Inks – Urban Rural Action

• • New North Project

                            Costanza Generali – Center for Community and Nonprofit Studies

• Discussion Across Difference

Marissa Rueda & Andrew Badt – BridgeMadison

Closing Mini-Session: Conclusions & Celebrations*