Program 2008 - Government & Politics
Thursday-Friday, February 7-8, 2008
The State House, Concord, NH
Directions
and General Info
Use the link above, or visit Mapquest
for directions from your own home.
Action
Assignment
DRESS: Business
AGENDA
This Program Day is proudly sponsored by Unitil
February
7, 2008
State
House, Executive Council Chambers and the
NH
Historical Society, 30 Park St. , Concord , NH
8:00
Continental breakfast
in the Executive Council Chambers
8:15
Associate Check in (Part One)
9:15
Welcome to State Government
The
Honorable Sylvia Larsen, President, NH Senate
The
Honorable Terie Norelli, Speaker, NH House of Representatives
10:00
Tour of State House AND/OR House or Senate if it is
in session
11:00
A Conversation with Governor Lynch
12:00
Lunch – State House Cafeteria
Reconvene at the NH Historical Society, The Tuck Library
1:00
A Conversation with Attorney General Kelly Ayotte
2:15
Break
2:30
The Political Landscape – What is in store for NH in the
coming ‘08
Presidental
race and reflections on the Primary
Andy
Smith, Director, University of New Hampshire Survey Center
4:00
Program day wrap-up/logistics for tomorrow
New
Hampshire Charitable Foundation, 37 Pleasant
Street, Concord , NH
5:00
– 8:00 Cocktails and Dinner with presentation. “ Point
/ Counterpoint ”
The
Honorable Deborah “Arnie” Arnesen, Democratic Activist and
Tom
Rath, Partner in Rath, Young and Pignetelli, Republican Activist
February
8, 2008
Legislative
Office Building
33
North State Street , Concord , NH
8:00
Legislative Office
Building (Room 206/208) Associate Check in (Part Two)
9:00
How is Public Policy made in NH? The “behind
the scene” view
Rebecca
Hutchinson, Legislative Policy Aide for the House
10:00
Mock Legislative hearings -
How does it work?
The
Honorable Donna Sytek, former Speaker, NH House of Representatives
and Representative Elizabeth Hager
NH
Historical Society, The Tuck Library
30
Park St. , Concord , NH
Noon
Lunch
1:30
Local Government – What the State Does matters
Todd
Selig, Town Mananger of Durham
3:00
Wrap-up, evaluations and assignments
BIOS
FOR GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
February
7-8, 2008
THE
HONORABLE DEBORAH “ARNIE” ARNESON
Deborah
“Arnie” Arnesen broke political barriers in 1992 when she became
the first woman Democrat to run for Governor in New Hampshire
. She was also the first woman (Republican or Democrat) to win
the state primary in a hotly contested race against a former State
Party Chair and a former five-term Congressman; she garnered more
votes in her run for Governor than any other Democratic candidate
at that time. From 1984-1992, Arnie served as a State Representative
in the NH General Court.
Arnie
is currently a Democratic Activist, host of Capital Ideas with
Arnie Arneson on WNDS and visible in the political community.
She was a Fellow at the Institute of Politics at the Kennedy School
of government at Harvard in 1997, prior to which she had been
a candidate for US congress from NH's Second Congressional District.
Prior to announcing her bid for Congress, Arnie divided her time
serving as the Executive Director of the Wiss Institute for Public
Policy Research and hosting radio call-in shows in Keene and Manchester
. She is currently a columnist for the Boston Sunday Globe,
New Hampshire Weekly and can be seen on “Five on Five” the
Boston ABC-TV affiliate. Arnie also provided political commentary
with the Executive Director of the State Republican Party on New
Hampshire Public Radio and has appeared on “ Close-Up NH ” on
WMUR, an ABC-TV affiliate. Before she ran for state-wide office
in 1992, Arnie hosted a radio call-in show on WNHV in White River
Jct., Vermont . She lectures nationally on tax policy, education
equity and health care. In February 1999, Arnie was elected “Governor
of New England” by the participants in a regional forum co-sponsored
by the NE Board of Higher Education, the New England Conference
of Governors and the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston , prevailing
over elected officials from the other New England States.
Ms.
Arnesen received her BA degree cum laude from St. Olaf College
in Northfield , Minnesota , a JD from Vermont Law School , and
was a Visiting Scholar at the Harvard School of Public Health.
She serves on various boards including the National Board of Common
Cause and the Board of Leadership New Hampshire. Ms. Arnesen was
the recipient of the 1997 NH Democratic Party's Eleanor Roosevelt
Award, given for her contribution to work for public service,
social justice, equality and human rights. Arnie was also a 1991
Council of State Governments Toll Fellow, a 1993 Susan B. Anthony
Award Recipient, the N.O.W.'s 1994 Marilla Ricker Award Recipient
and was recognized in 1993, 1994 and 1996 as one of New Hampshire
's ten most powerful women by Network Publications. Arnie has
been honored by the Sierra Club, AARP, Girls, Inc., National Association
of Social Workers (NH Chapter) and was recognized by the Center
for Policy Alternatives as one of the key political leaders in
the nation. In 1991 and 1995, Arnie was selected as one of 50
pro-choice women leaders in the country invited to attend the
prestigious Leadership Conference of the Women's Campaign Research
Fund in Washington .
ATTORNEY
GENERAL KELLY AYOTTE
HOMETOWN
-- Nashua , N.H.
EDUCATION
-- 1990, Pennsylvania State University , B.A., 1993, Villanova
University School of Law, 1993.
POLITICAL
AFFILIATION: Republican
EXPERIENCE
-- New Hampshire 's first female attorney general began her legal
career as clerk to New Hampshire Supreme Court Associate Justice
Sherman Horton. She joined a private law firm in Manchester in
1994, but left in 1998 to join the state Department of Justice
as a criminal prosecutor. She was appointed senior assistant attorney
general and head of the criminal bureau in 2000. As criminal bureau
chief, she won guilty pleas from a pair of teens accused of murdering
two Dartmouth College professors. In 2003, Ayotte left the department
to serve as legal counsel to then-Gov. Craig Benson, but returned
the same year following her appointment as deputy attorney general.
In July 2004, Benson appointed Ayotte to replace Peter Heed, who
resigned. Gov. John Lynch nominated Ayotte to a full term this
September. She was unanimously confirmed in October.
FAMILY
-- Husband, Joseph Daley, daughter, Katherine.
REPRESENTATIVE
ELIZABETH HAGER
Elizabeth
Sears Hager has been in public service for almost three decades:
she was first elected to the New Hampshire Legislature in 1972
and is now serving her twelfth term. She ran for the Republican
nomination for governor in the September 1992 primary election.
Ms. Hager was also a Concord City Councilor, serving as the city's
first woman mayor from 1988 to 1990. She was a delegate to the
1974 and 1984 Constitutional Conventions and was a sponsor of
the Equal Rights Amendment, which became a part of the State Constitution
in 1975.
Ms.
Hager has been Executive Director of the United Way of Merrimack
County in Concord for nine years. She assumed that position after
years of volunteerism, including roles as both President of the
Board and Campaign Chair of the United Way . Ms. Hager has served
on the Board of Directors of many organizations: the Society for
the Protection of New Hampshire Forests, the Concord YMCA, Concord
Child and Family Services and the Friends Program. She founded
and chaired the New Hampshire Women's Lobby, chaired NH's International
Women's Year meeting and served on the New Hampshire Commission
on the Status of Women. She is a director of Jefferson Pilot Variable
Funds and is on the advisory board of TDBanknorth , New Hampshire
.
Elizabeth
Hager earned a master's degree from the University of New Hampshire
after receiving an undergraduate degree from Wellesley College
. She and her husband, Dennis Hager, have two married daughters
and three grandchildren.
THE
HONORABLE SYLVIA LARSEN
Current
Office:
Senate President
Current
District:
15
District
Seeking:
15
First
Elected:
1994
Last
Elected:
11/07/2006
Next
Election:
2008
Party:
Democrat
Committees:
Executive
Departments and Administration, Finance, Internal Affairs
Background
Information
Family:
Husband:
Robert, 2 Children
Birth
date: 07/14/1949
Birthplace:
Troy
, OH
Home
City
: Concord
, NH
Religion:
Congregational
Education:
BA,
University of Wisconsin , Madison , 1972.
Professional
Experience:
New Hampshire Council on World Affairs,1981-1989
New Hampshire Disability Council, 1981-1989
Program Director/Member, New Hampshire Historical Society, 1979,1981-1989
Public Relations Consulting, New Hampshire DD Council, New Hampshire
Council World Affairs, 1980-1982
Past President, Bancroft Products Incorporated.
Political
Experience:
Democratic Leader, New Hampshire State Senate, present
Senator, New Hampshire State Senate, 1994-present
Councilor-at-Large, City of Concord, 1989-1998
Legislative Liaison, Governor Hugh Gallen, 1979-1981
Adminstrative Assistant, Wisconsin State Senate, 1972-1979.
Organizations:
Co-Chair, Capitol Center for the Arts' Capitol Campaign Drive
Christa McAuliffe Planetarium Commission
Co-Chair, Concord Boys and Girls Club Teen Center Drive
Concord Centennial Center
Concord Hospital Board
Board ofDirectors, Concord Regional Development Corporation
Board of Director Chair, Families in Transition-Concord
Incorporator, Merrimack County Savings Bank
Senate Representative, New Hampshire Healthy Kids Corporation
Senate Representative, New Hampshire Children's Trust Fund
Member, New Hampshire Workforce Opportunity Council
Member, New Hampshire Youth Council.
Caucuses/Non-Legislative
Committees:
City of Concord, Economic Advisory Council
Community Development Advisory Committee
Economic Development Committee
Fiscal Goals Committee
Fourth of July Fireworks Committee
Member, Land and Community Heritage Commission
Merrimack River Study Committee for Scenic and Recreational Designation
Chair, New Hampshire College Tuition Savings Plan Commission
Solid Waste Committee.
GOVERNOR
JOHN LYNCH
A
business and community leader, John Lynch has dedicated his life
to putting people first. As Governor of New Hampshire, John Lynch
will put the interests of New Hampshire families first, fighting
to create good jobs, improve schools, and expanding access to
affordable health care.
As
a businessman, John Lynch has established a track record of turning
around troubled companies. As the President and CEO of Knoll,
Inc., he changed the way this national furniture manufacturer
did business and transformed it from a company losing $50 million
a year into one making a profit of nearly $240 million. But he
did more than that. Under his leadership, Knoll created new jobs
and initiated an annual bonus for factory workers, established
a college scholarship program for their children, created retirement
plans for employees who didn't have any, and gave workers stock
in the company.
Early
in his career, as the Director of Admissions at the Harvard Business
School , John Lynch made ethics one of the criteria for admissions
for the first time in the school's history.
He
has also served as the President of The Lynch Group, a business
consulting firm in Manchester . He has been a member of the board
of Citizens Bank of New Hampshire .
John
Lynch strongly believes that our public schools and public colleges
and universities are the foundation of our democracy and the key
to our economic prosperity. As chair of the University System
Board of Trustees from 2001 to 2004, he worked to keep tuition
increases to a minimum. He was first appointed to the Board of
Trustees in 2000.
Expanding
access to affordable health care is a passion for John Lynch.
A member of the board of Catholic Medical Center in Manchester
from 1997 to 2003, he led the successful fight to stop a corporation
from closing this community hospital.
A
community leader, he is past president of the UNH alumni association
and is a member of the board of the Capitol Center for the Arts.
He has also coached youth soccer, hockey, softball and baseball.
John
Lynch was born in Waltham , Massachusetts on November 25, 1952,
the fifth of William and Margaret Lynch's six children and attended
the local public schools. His mother was an elementary school
teacher and his father ran a local Boys' Club.
Working
his way through college, John Lynch earned his undergraduate degree
from the University of New Hampshire in 1974. He also holds an
M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School and a law degree from
Georgetown University Law Center .
He
and his wife of 28 years, Susan, live in Hopkinton with their
three children, Jacqueline, Julia and Hayden, who attend local
public schools.
THE
HONORABLE TERIE NORELLI
Current
Office:
Speaker of the House
Current
District:
Rockingham 16
Office
Seeking:
State Representative
District
Seeking:
Rockingham 16
First
Elected:
1996
Last
Elected:
11/07/2006
Next
Election:
2008
Party:
Democrat
Committees:
Finance
Background
Information
Family:
Husband:
Allen, 2 Children.
Birth
date: 07/07/1952
Birthplace:
Orange
, NJ
Home
City
: Portsmouth
, NH
Education:
BS,
University of New Hampshire , 1985.
Professional
Experience: Educator
Political
Experience:
Assistant Democratic Leader, New Hampshire State House of Representatives,
present
Representative, New Hampshire State House of Representatives,
1996-present.
Organizations:
Bringing Back Bejing 95
NARAL-New Hampshire
Sexual Assualt Support Services
United States-China Joint Conference on Womens Issues.
THOMAS
RATH
Tom
Rath is a founding partner of Rath, Young and Pignatelli, P.A.
in Concord . Prior to 1987, he was a partner with Orr & Reno,
P.A. and served in the Office of the Attorney General, first as
an attorney in the Criminal Justice Division and ultimately as
Attorney General from 1978 to 1980. He has been a presenter for
Leadership New Hampshire, Leadership Manchester and Leadership
Concord as well as for several continuing education seminars.
He serves on the Boards of Associated Grocers of New England,
Chubb America Fund and PlayBall NH and has worked on numerous
political campaigns as advisor, strategist and chairman.
Tom
appears regularly as a political analyst on both national and
regional news programs, including CNN's Inside Politics and
is a panelist on Newsnine Close-Up , a weekly public
affairs discussion program on WMUR-TV.
Tom
received his Bachelors degree at Dartmouth College with a major
in Government and his Law degree at Georgetown University Law
School .
TODD
SELIG
Todd
I. Selig serves as the Town Administrator of Durham, New Hampshire.
After graduating Phi Beta Kappa from Syracuse University in 1991,
Mr. Selig went on to complete a Master of Public Administration
degree from the University of New Hampshire in 1994. He
has served in a variety of New Hampshire administrative positions
within both the municipal and school sectors including positions
in Raymond, Laconia , New Boston, Hopkinton, and now Durham .
In 2003, Todd Selig was awarded the Caroline Gross Fellowship
allowing him to attend the Program for Senior Executives in State
and Local Government at Harvard University 's John F. Kennedy
School of Government. In addition to being involved as a
community leader, Mr. Selig serves as a Corporator on the Board
of Canterbury Shaker Village in Canterbury , New Hampshire and
is a member of the International City/County Management Association.
He is also a member of the Laconia and Durham Historical Societies.
Mr. Selig resides in Durham , New Hampshire .
ANDY
SMITH
Dr.
Andrew Smith is the Director of the UNH Survey Center . The Survey
Center is a non-partisan, academic public opinion research center
for governments, not for profits, and faculty researchers. Dr.
Smith is also a Associate Research Professor in the UNH Department
of Political Science. His research has focused on survey methodology,
elections, and public policy. The Survey Center is nationally
known for its election polling. It has consistently conducted
the most accurate polling in New Hampshire elections. In recent
years, the Survey Center has conducted polls for CNN, Fox News,
WCVB in Boston , WMUR in Manchester , KYW in Philadelphia , USA
Today, the Boston Globe, and the Philadelphia Inquirer.
THE
HONORABLE DONNA SYTEK
Donna
Sytek is a veteran of New Hampshire politics, having served as
Speaker of the House and chairman of the New Hampshire Republican
Party. During 23 years as a state representative from Salem ,
she chaired several major committees including Judiciary, Ways
and Means, and Criminal Justice. She has a continuing interest
and involvement in state policy on taxation, corrections, and
substance abuse treatment. For almost 30 years Speaker Sytek has
played an active role in recruiting and training candidates for
office, and has been a delegate to four Republican National Conventions.
Since
her retirement from the legislature in 2000, Speaker Sytek has
been elected to the boards of the New Hampshire Center for Public
Policy Studies, the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, and New
Hampshire Public Television. She also served as chairman of the
Judicial Conduct Commission and was an incorporator of the Vesta
Roy Excellence in Public Service Series. Donna's past board memberships
include Leadership New Hampshire, New Futures, the Salem Boys
and Girls Club, and the Salem VNA.
After
years of witnessing mangled introductions on the political dinner
circuit she wrote Further Ado: Practical Protocol for New
Hampshire , published in 2003, and has become a frequent
speaker on political etiquette.
Donna's
foreign travels have taken her to South Africa , Zimbabwe , Taiwan
, Latvia , and Israel , as well as many European countries. She
has five states remaining to achieve her personal goal of visiting
all 50 states.
Speaker
Sytek is a native of Haverhill , Massachusetts and a graduate
of Regis College . During her professional career Donna worked
as a medical technologist and as a community relations representative
for Seabrook Station. She has been married for 39 years to John,
a Latin teacher at Salem High School . Their daughter Mary is
a nurse at a Florida hospital.
